LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-President Lazarus Chakwera on Tuesday night, May 23, 2022 fired incompetent Secretary to President and Cabinet (SPC) Zangazanga Chikhosi.
Chakwera has therefore replaced Zangazanga with Colleen Zamba who until her appointment was head of the Presidential Delivery Unit (PDU).
Chikhosi and Zamba (from left)
The President told the news conference at Kamuzu Palace in the capital Lilongwe that Zangazanga has been assigned to other government duties.
Chikhosi sacking comes amid widespread condemnation that the State President has been slow to act on those people frustrating the government’s agenda to fight corruption.
“With immediate effect Mr Zangazanga Chikhosi has been replaced with Madam Collen Zamba as the new SPC with immediate effect and Mr Chikhosi has since been assigned other duties,” said Chakwera without elaborating on Chikhosi’s new assignment.
Interestingly Zamba is the only second woman after former Chief Secretary Hawa Ndilowe, to serve in the highest civil service office.
Who is Colleen Zamba?
Ms. Colleen Zamba is currently the Head of Presidential Delivery Unit and Chief Advisor to the President on SDGs & Int. Affairs in State House in Malawi since April this year.
For the past twelve years she has been Economic Advisor in UNDP with six years in Nigeria Country Office, four years Zambia Country Office and past one year covering Swaziland and Lesotho Country offices.
Zamba new SPC
Prior to UNDP, Colleen a macro Economist, career technocrat has nineteen years managerial and professional experience in development policy rising to Permanent Secretary Cadre in Malawi Government where she served as Principal Secretary in Ministries of Finance responsible for Economic affairs, Debt and Aid dealing with development partners, Government decision and Policy Makers and politicians (Cabinet).
Colleen holds formal qualifications in macroeconomics, (MPhil Economic Planning), development policy (Post Graduate Diploma in Development Policy) obtained at University of Glasgow where she was awarded best student of the year 1989 and a Bachelor’s degree in Social Science (Economics) obtained at the University of Malawi.
The nature of work and responsibilities in all these employments involved application of superior networking skills, with interpersonal skills through working with Ministers of Finance, Trade, Heads of Government and State, politicians, professionals, chief Executives, donors and Development Partners to deliver and achieve planned results.
MZUZU-(MaraviPost)-President Lazarus Chakwera has on 11 August, 2021 fired Energy Minister, Newton Kambala and chief adviser on strategy and manifesto implementation Chris Chaima Banda in connection with his alleged embroilment in fuel supply contracts at National Oil Company of Malawi (Nocma).
According to a press statement issued on August 11, 2021 and signed by the Secretary to President and Cabinet, Zanga-Zanga Chikhosi, the removal of Kambala from the ministerial position is with immediate effect.
While State House Director of Communication Sean Kampondeni confirmed also firing of Chaima Banda with immediate effect.
“In exercise of the powers conferred upon him by Section 95 (2) of the Constitution of the Republic of Malawi, His Excellency the President, Dr Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, has removed Honourable Newton Kambala from the Cabinet, as a Cabinet member, with effect from today, 11th August, 2021,” reads the statement in part.
The statement further indicates that all responsibilities and duties of the ministry will be exercised by the Head of State, Lazarus Chakwera.
The country’s graft busting body, the Anti-Corruption Bureau – ACB, on Monday, arrested Kambala, Alliance for Democracy (Aford) President, Enock Chihana and Presidential Advisor on Strategies, Chris Chaima Banda, for being involved in the Nocma contracts saga.
The trio is accused of attempting to influence the awarding of the contracts to fuel suppliers.
LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-The sleepy and old Malawi’s Secretary to President and Cabinet (SPC) Zangazanga Chinkhosi has been caught pocketing MK244 million funds meant for July 6, 2021 independence cerebration.
This comes after President Lazarus Chakwera Tonse government told Malawians lies that only MK50 million funds were the only one used.
This publication’s highly-placed impeccable source at OPC revealed that Malawians were hoodwinked to think that the budget was slashed as stated by Minister of Home Affairs Richard Chimwendo Banda who was Chairperson of the organising Committee of the celebrations.
The source who shared with us part of the bank statement from an FDH Bank account showing some transactions by Chikhosi, said the government ‘silently’ withdrew almost the same amount that was initially budgeted for the celebrations through Chikhosi.
“They lied to the nation that they have reduced the independence celebration budget to only K50 million but it was all lies. They withdrew all the money as earlier budgeted and what they did with that money, your guess is as good as mine,” said the source.
The bank statement shows that on 2 July 2021, there was an inward telex payment with reference details; RFB/57 Independence//090TRF006290//OPC amount K238,286,196.00. The account number is 1970000056939 Account name Chief Secretary to the Government.
Chikhosi was not available for comment as his phones went unanswered.
But Chimwenda on Saturday, July 24, 2021 told the news conference that the funding which the committee planed to use is different from expenditures.
He added that the funds which remained will be returned to Account Number One.
Office of President and Cabinet (OPC) in Crisis I’m yet to meet a single person who can give a compliment to the Office of President & Cabinet. One wonders what special Qualities did President Lazarus Chakwera see in Zangazanga Chikosi that he was resurrected from Retirement to head a critical office.
When OPC is in turmoil, irresponsible, incompetent and or too slow, it plunges the entire Public Administration into systematic disorganization. Nothing moves on time. History has the tendency to repeat itself.
Zangazanga Chikhosi makes the Presidency look archaic, evasive, irrelevant and carelessly irresponsible. The victim is the public image of the President. Cry Wolf. Uladi Mussa is serving a jail. Former Minister of Home Office & Immigration Services was found guilty of selling Malawian Citizenship to Burundians.
However, if you read the Judgment itself, you will find the paragraph that implicates his PS in the Ministry. Who was the PS? Zangazanga Chikhosi. In short, this man should have been serving a jail term with his Minister.
In Tonse Administration, the reorganization saw the relocation of Department of Disaster Management from Office of the Vice President to Office of the President & Cabinet. Covid Funds are coordinated by Disaster Management Department under OPC.
In short, Zangazanga Chikhosi is the man responsible.We know that MK6.2 billion was looted. Public Officers were interdicted and later left off the hook. No evidence of wrongdoing. Who really stole the money? We don’t know. Apparently the money grew legs and walked away into thin air.
Chikhosi is apparently the luckiest man on planet earth. Having failed to manage or monitor K6.2 billion, he was given another MK17.1 billion. This time the President specifically ordered Expenditure Reports on weekly basis.No Single Report has been issued to date.
My brother Idriss Ali Nassah has endlessly asked for the Expenditure Reports so that the public can appreciate how their money was used. Fellow Countrymen.
Ladies & Gentlemen, we are not selling sweets or candies on Covid Funds. We are sick & tired singing the same song. We are dragging OPC & DDM to court. It’s just a matter of principle.
We will also add a plea: Send Zangazanga back into retirement and also ask ACB to act on crimes that saw Uladi Mussa jailed of which judgment implicates Zangazanga.
Zinazo mudzikambirana kwanu komweko. Ndawala pa Town…Ine Ndwiiii
Disclaimer! The views expressed in the article are those of the author not necessarily of The Maravi Post or Editor..
BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)-When President Lazarus Chakwera message on fighting graft seem to fall on deaf ears as none of the controlling officers in government and parastatals is listening
Surely, an unsuspecting taxpayer would surely be disappointed to learn that the Tonse government, which Chakwera is heading, has gladly accepted to inherit the mediocrity and “rubble” that has denied this nation meaningful development.
This publication is reliably informed that Electricity Generating Company (EGENCO) Chief Executive Officer, William Liabunya, and Procurement Manager, Geoffrey Ntaila, have entered into a multibillion-kwacha contract involving a company called Teligenta – a company co-owned by Zameer Karim and Ahmed Osman to supply LED bulbs at exorbitant prices
Karim – whose – companies should be barred from doing business with government – has been in and out of police custody for no good reason, including his alleged involvement in the procurement of MK2.7 billion meant for food rations for the Malawi Police Service (MPS) personnel through his Pioneer Investments Limited.
But even before the courts were to conclude half of their cases, the Tonse government has awarded them a contract to purchase ABB branded electrical products in an inflated amount of US$4 million.
Our source at Ministry of Energy confided that in the past, the company would buy these products directly from Osman’s ABB company, but it is now procuring them through Zameer Karim’s company at more than five times the market price.
“We appeal to the Anti-Corruption Bureau to consider this as a matter worth investigating because both of these companies were exposed in July 2020 for multibillion Kwacha contract scam. ABB Electricals supplied Led bulbs at EGENCO whereas Teligenta supplied Led bulbs at ESCOM,” our source disclosed.
He said it was strange that the Tonse government would rush quickly to award a huge contract to this company without verification of their past dealings, which are nothing, but being questionable.
Our source further confided that to make matters worse, EGENCO has made the contract to be a single procurement source.
“We need to stop this daylight robbery. These goods in China Alibaba are worth less than US$1million the whole contract,” he emphasized.
Both EGENCO and ESCOM could not be immediately drawn to comment on the matter.
Secretary to the President and Cabinet Zangazanga Chikhosi is the Board Chairman of EGENCO.
Zangazanga needs to explain independence celebration funds
LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-The country’s civil rights watchdog Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (CDEDI) is demanding accountability on how public funds were spent on July 6, 2021’s Malawi’s 57 Independence Day celebration.
The demand comes as reports show that President Lazarus Chakwera’s Tonse government did not use the trimmed MK43 million from initial MK240 million budget.
With lies, Chakwera Tonse administration instead used MK238, 286, 196.00 which was directly wired into Chief Secretary to Government FDH Bank account 19700 000 56939.
This has prompted CDEDI demanding detailed accounts report on how the remaining funds were used.
In letter dated July 16, 2021 in our possession, CDEDI demands accountability of the funds within seven days
“Failure to do so within the seven days, will leave us with no choice, but to invoke the Access to Information Act, to ensure that the citizens, who double as taxpayers, have the right to access this public information, without undue hindrance,” demands CDEDI letter signed by its Executive Director Sylvester Namiwa addressing to Chief Secretary to Government ZANGAZANGA CHIKHOSI copied to Minister of Homeland Security (Chairperson for the 2021Independence Day Celebrations), Minister of Information and Director, Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB).
Chikhosi is yet to comment on matter.
Below is CDEDI’s full letter:
Dear Sir,
RE: REQUEST FOR 2021 INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATIONS EXPENDITURE REPORT
The Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (CDEDI), hereby writes to be furnished with an expenditure report for the 2021 Independence Day Celebrations, by your office. We are making this request based on our investigations, whose results have shown that a commercial bank account no. 19700 000 56939, held at the FDH Bank, under the name Chief Secretary to Government, receiptedfunds amounting to MK238, 286, 196.00 on July 2, 2021, being funds meant for the 2021 Independence Day Celebrations. Ironically, Malawians were told by the Chairperson for the celebrations, Hon. Richard Chimwendo-Banda, that government had trimmed the budget for the celebrations from the initial MK240 million, to MK46 million, due to public outcry to have this year’s celebrations cancelled.
Just to refresh your mind sir, Malawians saw no wisdom in celebrating our independence, at a time when we could not afford to procure Covid-19 vaccines, and neither can we afford to stock our public health facilities with essential medicines and drugs. It is against this background that CDEDI is challenging you sir, to explain to the nation, how the Chief Secretary to Government bank account receipted the whole amount for the Independence Day Celebrations, and not just the MK46 million, as earlier indicated by the Chairperson for the celebrations. This is theft of public funds, and deceit of the highest order by government!
CDEDI is, therefore, giving you sir, seven (7) days to make public a detailed statement on how the above stated funds were used. Failure to do so within the seven days, will leave us with no choice, but to invoke the Access to Information Act, to ensure that the citizens, who double as taxpayers, have the right to access this public information, without undue hindrance.
Secretary to the President and Cabinet Zangazanga Chinkosi
LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-President Lazarus Chakwera must demonstrate now that he is true leader Malawians have been waited for by acting on his corrupt and power abusive aids including cabinet minister of information Gospel Kazako and Secretary to The President Zangazanga Chikhosi.
The two are entangled into abuse of public office power for a year now.
Below are justification details of how the two have been abusing public office for personal interests than of the nation.
The offence of Abuse of Office is perhaps one of the most prevalent crimes committed by political, civil and public servants.
Often times, the abuse is caused by political establishment because they feel are immune from prosecution as they control State machinery.
News reaching this publication is President Chakwera’s two trusted aides, Minister of Information Gospel Kazako and Chief Secretary to Cabinet, Zangazanga Chikhosi have become “talk of the town” for abuse of office and manufacturing gimmicks to bamboozle the public in their underhand dealings.
It has also reported that the Minister of Information was in South Africa with his new trusted aide Francis Bisika to meet the Agillis International which is behind the “Spy Machine”.
Francis Bisika who was Deputy Director General of MACRA at one point was “fired” and many were suspended. After that Mr Bisika found his way to be Chief Director at the Ministry of Information under E- Government. In one of the emails that Mr Bisika wrote to the Board to suspend the meeting under the directive of the Minister he is alleging that he is South Africa with his wife therefore the Board can not discuss issues without him since the entire Ministry has nobody to replace him at the meeting.
But reports have come out to say that Bisika was with the Minister in RSA to meet Angillis Company to facilitate deals with and collect their “share” behind the Board.
Bisika was one who initiated this contract while at MACRA before he was “fired”. This publication is here by attaching the email that Bisika wrote while in RSA:
On Thu, May 20, 2021 at 8:39 PM, Francis
<francis.bisika@ict.gov.mw> wrote:
Dear Company Secretary,
I write to acknowledge receipt of the notice of the 1st Joint Meeting of the Legal and Administration and Technical Committees of the Board.
I would like to give my apology since I am in South Africa where my spouse is undergoing a knee treatment.
In the absence of someone that I can delegate to adequately articulate the Ministry’s position on some of the Agenda items, the Ministry will not be sending any representative to this meeting.
Let me however put the Ministry’s position on the proposed agenda:
The Ministry support the requests under Agenda Item 6 and 7 but does not support the request under Agenda Item 5 for the reasons below:
Management have not provided a cost benefit analysis for the actions it is intending to take.
The Ministry is of the view that Management should spell out clearly how it is going to protect the already made investment with the current supplier
Management has not denied being part of the cause for the supplier not implementing all the modules and have not explained why it failed to provide the supplier with what was required for the supplier to deliver on the supply contract nor has Management told the board what actions were or will be taken against the people responsible for this failure.
Management has not explained how it intends to carry out monitoring functions in the event that the current supplier walks away on the support during the course of the legal action. It is a known fact that the current supplier has remote access to the system which puts the authority entirely at the mercy of the current supplier.
FRANCIS BISIKA
For: Secretary for Information
P/Bag 310
LILONGWE 3
MALAWI
Tel: +2651759032
Dir: +2651758292
Cel: +265999929800
Email: francis.bisika@ict.gov.mw
http:\\ www.ict.gov.mw
Mr Kazako is also accused by employees at MACRA for pocketing millions of Kwacha for tele- centre tour in the country a thing which he did with only by visiting three centres. He also pocked some allowance for external travel to Zimbabwe to attend a Pan African Postal Union meeting, he didn’t travel.
Kadzako has supervised the cynical looting at MACRA. The Board members were claiming Travel & Transportation (T&T)allowances while not using their personal vehicles for the supposed trips.A recent article in the online publication,Malawi Expose,mentioned of trips undertaken by the Board members to places as far as Karonga and Chitipa in Staff members official cars despite them claiming T&T. According to the publication,such trips started as far back as January with paid hotels but still claiming their daily allowances as well as the issue of T&T.
So why has Gospel Kazako been spared?
Simple,they want him to be the running mate come 2025 so he is untouchable, he can decide not to question why Macra gave k46 million for an “undeserving activity” and approved a Mk60million shopping trip to Dubai the trip which was not supposed to be done.
Come to Zangazanga Chikhosi another untouchable in the Chakwera administration. He has taken two Boards to Dubai and these are NOcma and EGENCO and the President had paid a blind eye to this deliberately. Zangazanga Chikhosi has been involved in all bad deals starting with Nocma/ MERA saga. It had to take ACB to stop corruption that was orchestrated by him.
But what does this say about President Chakwera leadership?
Simple answer:
“Chakwera is a pastor and he is one of the typical examples of transactional leaders this country has produced so far. He is captured. He can’t lead. He has to be led,” says one political analyst in an interview with this publication who urged President Chakwera to clear two major “rubbles” who are Gospel Kazako and Zangazanga Chikhosi for abuse of office and corruption.
BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)—Malawians will have to wait longer to know the results of the audit into K6.2 billion meant for Covid-19 fight as President Lazarus Chakwera projected that the audit will take one month and it will cover the period between September and December 2020.
Making his seventh National Address on the War on Covid-19 on Sunday evening, the President said the audit will focus on validation of the report from the Presidential Task Force on Covid-19 and probe of the expenditures made.
He said: “The second [part] will focus on investigating how every kwacha was spent, by whom and whether the spending was lawful.
“Upon completion of the independent audit, any public officers associated with wrongdoing will be dealt with and face the law.”
Chakwera, who ordered mass interdiction of controlling officers involved in the Covid-19 funds scandal, was accompanied by Secretary to the President and Cabinet Zangazanga Chikhosi.
Chikhosi confirmed that interdictions of cluster heads the President directed were effected.
The President had directed Chikhosi to interdict controlling officers and heads of Covid-19 response clusters for failing to submit weekly expenditure reports on their allocation of the K17.5 billion Treasury disbursed last month.
The controlling officers and heads of clusters were also faulted for presenting expenditure reports void of supporting documents to the Presidential Task Force on Covid-19 regarding how they spent their share of the K6.2 billion.
Police last week arrested 16 employees of the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma) in relation to the management of the K6.2 billion response funds.
The President’s order to interdict en masse the controlling officers, who include heads of government ministries, departments and agencies such as principal secretaries (PSs), district commissioners, chief executive officers of councils, has sparked debate regarding the legality.
In apparent direct response to the sentiments, Chakwera said he tasked the Office of the President and Cabinet to consult with the Solicitor General, the acting Auditor General “and others” to ensure that the interdiction letters were written in a mannercompliant with the law.
YAS executive director Charles Kajoloweka declines board member appointment
MZUZU-(MaraviPost)—Mzuzu based youth activist, Charles Kajoloweka, has declined the job the State President Dr Lazarus Chakwera offered him as a board member for National Youth Council of Malawi.
Kajoloweka, who is the Executive Director of Youth and Society (YAS) made the revelation on Friday at a press briefing held in Mzuzu.
According to the vocal youthful activist, accepting the job may comprise the role of his organisation, which is to be a watchdog to the governance and a human rights protector to guard their violation by the government of the day.
While acknowledging the President’s gesture, Kajoloweka further indicated that juggling the duties of a board member of the youth council and that of his organisation, has the potential of rendering himself as partisan mouth piece for the youth who are currently wallowing in dire poverty, unemployment and illiteracy.
On Wednesday the Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Zangazanga Chikhosi, released the boards of directors for 67 parastatal organisations in which most human rights and governance watchdogs were roped in as members.
BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)—As new Secretary to President and Cabinet Zangazanga Chikhosi appears to continue repeating mistakes of his predecessor Lloyd Muhara in transferring and demotion of senior officers in government departments, Attorney General (AG) has asked his office to rescind the decision of transferring a senior officer in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Chizaso Nyirongo.
In a letter dated August 20, 2020 to Chikhosi, Silungwe advised against the re-appointment of Nyirongo through secondment from Law Commission as Chief legislative counsel to replace the incumbent Amani Mussa.
“I note that you have not responded to my letter of 16th July 2020. Please note that the purported secondment of Mr. Chizaso Nyirongo; and the posting of Mr. Amani Mussa breach the Public Service Act, especially Regulation 1: 176 of the Malawi Public Service Regulations. The two decisions are ultra-vires and illegal,” reads the letter in part.
Information gathered by the Maravi Post indicates that Nyirongo is a close relation to deputy SPC Janet Chikaya Banda.
Commenting on the matter, governance expert Makhumbo Munthali has advised Chikhosi to try as much as possible to avoid repeating the same mistakes which were associated with his predecessor Lloyd Muhara.
In another related development, former Solicitor General and Principal Secretary for Justice Getrude Hiwa has taken government to court over his reassignment to the Office of the President and Cabinet as chief Director.
Hiwa, who was replaced by Bruno Kalemba, views the new position as demotion.
Malawi breaking news and World News. News about Malawi, Malawi Business, Malawi Tourism, Malawi Politics, Malawi News, World and Africa Top News.
