According to a press release made available to the Maravi Post, Vice President and UTM Party President Saulos Chilima had misgivings to the proposal to have former President Joyce Banda’s son Roy Kachale as his running mate which has led to Peoples Party pulling out of the Alliance just agreed on last Friday.
PP announced through a statement Monday that it has pulled out of the Alliance because UTM ‘has failed to comply with the terms of the agreement and the solidarity that existed between UTM and PP.’
But sources close to the talks said Joyce Banda was insisting that Saulos Chilima pick her son from Husband Roy Kachale as his running mate.
“But Chilima has looked at the interests of the nation over the interests of a family. This is what has led to Peoples Party to pull out of the coalition,” said the source.
UTM Publicity Director Joseph Chidanti Malunga said the party will come with an official response to the matter later in the day.
Earlier, former President Joyce Banda praised Chilima as the right person with energy to win the presidential election scheduled on May 21 this year.
Meanwhile Former President Joyce Banda is expected to present her nomination papers at COMESA Hall in Blantyre tomorrow at 2pm according to an official program released by the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC).
BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)—Malawi parliament committee, which is currently in Zambia probing the rotten maize deal, has proved to be a force to reckon with following its back to back fresh information it is gathering in the neighbouring country.
After finding information that Zambian Cooperative Federation (ZCF) paid for the funeral expenses of the late George Bakuwa including repatriation of the body to Malawi, the committee has also latest information implicating Trans Globe, a Malawian company in the dubious maize deal.
According to Zodiak, this was revealed by the Zambia government official in Zambia who said the Malawian company was part of the deal to supply maize from Zambia to Malawi.
This brings a third company in the controversial deal following Zambia Cooperative Federation (ZCF) and Kaloswe Courier and Commuter Limited which were previously known.
This information was presented to the special parliamentary committee from Malawi currently in Zambia on a fact finding mission by Principal Secretary for agriculture in Zambia Julius Shawa on Friday morning.
According to the leading local private radio station, the news of the involvement of a third company shocked members of the committee as all along only two firms have been mentioned.
“It remains a puzzle to us as to how they were going to share the profits.
“What we have been told here is that the ministry of agriculture which is the authority which issues export permits for farm produce authorized ZCF to export 50, 000 metric tonnes and Trans Globe 50, 000 metric tons, making a total of 100, 000 metric tonnes,” said Joseph Chidanti Malunga, chair of the joint inquiry of the committees of agriculture and public accounts in an interview with Zodiak.
Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (Admarc) has throughout the probe maintained that it is only aware of a contract with ZCF to supply the 100,000 metric tonnes of the staple grain from Zambia.
Earlier officials of the Agriculture and Marketing Corporation (Admarc) told the inquiry in Malawi that it had ordered 100 000mt from Zambia but only about 4000 tones were delivered.
The ministry is aware about Kaloswe not Trans Globe, said Malunga, there was no indication of Trans Globe in the Letter of Credit (LC).
Maize scandal draws in Trans Globe
Earlier on Thursday, the Executive Director of Kaloswe, Isaac Kapambwe, denied assertions that two maize contracts [with his company and ZCF] were signed on the same day – 17 June 2016 as earlier indicated by Admarc.
Mr. Kapambwe, while admitting having signed a contract with Admarc, on the said date told the inquiry he only signed one contract with the Malawian state-run grain marketer.
He repeatedly told the committee his company never signed a contract with ZCF on this day to supply Admarc with maize.
Mr Kapambwe said he was surprised to see documents that Admarc presented to the committee which indicated that both maize contracts were signed on the same day, saying such big contracts cannot be handled in a single day.
According to Kaloswe, his company interacted with Admarc through Grace Mhango, the chair of the Grain Traders Association in Malawi.
To his surprise, he claimed Admarc terminated the contract with Kaloswe and started dealing with ZCF, a company which was meant to supply Kaloswe with maize that would be in turn be sent to Malawi.
This left Kaloswe stranded as it had already entered into a contract with Admarc, he said, and such he has sued ZCF over loss of business.
The purchase of the maize by the Malawi government was meant to salvage a hunger situation that threatened 6.5 million people at its peak late last year.
Questions have been raised as to why Admarc bought maize at a higher price across the border when it could have sourced affordably locally.
The maize scandal has done a great damage to Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, George Chaponda, who is believed to have a hand in the scandal.
Chaponda is currently suspended after Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and other human rights activists sought a court injunction from Mzuzu High Court restraining the minister from executing ministerial duties, but the minister has been defiant and is continuing working as the minister.
Meanwhile, the CSOs are of the view that the minister must be fired for contempt of court order as he sneaked to Germany on official duties despite a court order restraining him from conducting official assignments.
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