Tag Archives: Foster Mulumbe

Malawi

Pres. Mutharika demands MK26bn maize-gate report by  January end, establishes Commission of Inquiry

Maravi Post correspondent

President Peter Mutharika has on Sunday established the commission of inquiry to investigate the ADMARC rotten maize deal with the Zambian private company Kaloswe.

Malawi President Peter Mutharika: establishes Commision of Inquiry on ADMARC maize-gate

This is with immediate effect according to the Chief Secretary to government Justice Lloyd Muhara.

He said the commission which will be headed by the ex- Chief Justice Anastasia Msosa has been tasked to bring the results to the President before 31 January, 2017.

“Yes, the President has indeed appointed the commission of inquiry to the Zambia maize saga and the commission will start its duty today Sunday,” said Muhara.

The members of the commission include Muhara himself, Mike Chinoko who is the group’s secretary, Dr Janet Banda (the Solicitor General) and Isaac Kayira (the public auditor).

The development has come at a time when some of the country’s Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) called for the resignation of the Minister of Agriculture George Chaponda and ADMARC boss Foster Mulumbe.

The CSOs are also asking Mulumbe to vacate the court injunction that ADMARC got to restrict Times Group from carrying the maize-gate stories.

Malawi’s ex-Chief Justice Msosa: heads the Commission of Inquiry on ADMARC maize-gate

While commending the President for the initiative, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament worried that there will be no transparency in the process especially if Chaponda, Mulumbe and his team continue with their position.

However, ADMARC insists that it is purchasing maize from Zambia Cooperative Federation (ZCF) and not Kaloswe as reported in the media.

Meanwhile, it is not known whether Mutharika will order the Agriculture minister and ADMARC boss to resign as demanded by the CSOs.

Malawi

Zambia maize saga: ACB ready to probe, APM asked to suspend Chaponda and Mulumbe

Maravi Post correspondent

LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-Barely two weeks after the country’s media exclusively exposed naughty deals on maize purchase in Zambia, the Anti-Corruption Bureau has come out of cocoon assuring the nation that is ready to prove the matter.

This comes amid a court injunction which Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation’s (Adamarc) Chief Executive officer (CEO) Foster Mulumbe obtained on Thursday stopping Times Group from publishing what the court document calls, “false and untrue” stories about him and the corporation.

But the media group defied the order by continuing carrying articles exposing the sour maize deal that ended Admarc being sued by privately owned company Kaloswe Commuter and Courier Limited based in Zambia.

Chaponda: At the center of Zambia maize scam

On Monday, this week Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture, Irrigation and Food Security also pushed ACB to launch an inquiry into the maize scandal pegged at MK26 billion.

ACB director general Lucas Kondowe has told the Weekend Nation that the bureau has taken up the matter to investigate following the media reports on maize saga.

Kondowe said ACB will work closely with the Anti-Corruption Commission of Zambia (ACCZ) to analyze documents related to the deal to establish if any wrongdoing was committed.

“We will be reviewing the tender documents together with ACCZ agency. We will start by looking at the tender documents then other aspects of the investigations will follow”, assures Kondowe.

Meanwhile Public Affairs Committee (PAC) of Parliament has urged President Peter Mutharika to suspend Admarc CEO Mulube and Agriculture Minister George Chaponda to pay away investigations on the matter.

PAC chairpersons Alekeni Menyani hinted that government was treating the matter with hide and seek without wanting to address the nation.

Menyani wondered as to why the entire Minister Chaponda who is being implicated remains in his position without remorse.

“We are not saying they are guilty. We simply saying they should allow investigations to take its course without and hindrances that after clearance, the two (Chaponda and Mulumbe) will retain their posts if necessary”, said Menyani.

Since the revelations started, executive arm of government has not been forthcoming with explanations in what transpired on the whole saga.

Minister Chaponda, who gave a ministerial statement in last Parliament sitting on the saga’s procurement, has been dogging the media on the matter leaving Mulumbe to fight on his own battle.

The corporation still insists that it’s buying the staple grain from Zambia Cooperative Federation (ZCF), a government agency; documents show that Admarc may have used a private Zambia company that may be more expensive than if the deal were government to government.

The Country’s grain marketer has reportedly paid US$34.5 million (MK26 billion) for the maize, which is US$13 million (MK9.5 billion) more than the US$21.5 million (MK15 billion) it could have paid had it bought the maize from Zambia government.