By Davidson Muva
Malawi stopped being under British rule over 50 years ago when it gained independence but, it seems, that was merely on paper. In reality, the European nation has a solid grip on the tiny country.
The clearest evidence of this is the Britain’s National Crimes Agency (NCA) infiltration into the country’s justice system as it is leading the investigation into businesses Malawian-born businessman Zuneth Sattar and several associates in the United Kingdom and Malawi.
In a joint operation with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) carried out in October this year, NCA raided Sattar’s offices and homes both in Britain and Malawi.
The raids, which resulted in seizure of laptops, documents and phones, follows a three-year-long investigation into Sattar’s suspected corrupt dealings with Malawi government of both immediate past president Peter Mutharika and the current Lazarus Chakwera.
Malawi, being a sovereign state has its own trustworthy investigators, prosecutors and an independent judiciary which the United Kingdom itself has praised time and again, surely has the capacity to be the master of its own legal boundaries.
The million-dollar question is: Why is the UK interfering in the legal affairs of Malawi?
An international relations affairs expert who asked not to be mentioned, observes that Britain, being a major donor, looks at Malawi as a poor country which it can toy around with willy-nilly.
“Malawi is a sovereign nation capable of handling its own issues. What we are seeing here is that Britain is taking advantage of our poverty to impose its authority. Do you think UK can investigate Iran government business dealings or Israel handling of its contracts?” he quizzed.
“If anything, it was supposed to be ACB leading the investigations and asking for assistance from UK in case some evidence is overseas.”
In Malawi, where Sattar grew up, he is a chief supplier to the military, police services, Immigration department, prisons services and other sectors through a chain of several companies trading under Ocean Ltd.
Beyond his business scope, he is involved in charity with strong links to the Muslim Hands and the Lia Relief Trust.
We have it on record that Sattar was not under any formal investigation by the ACB until NCA brought in its allegations and investigations. ACB Director Martha Chizuma testified in an interview with Platform for Investigative Journalism that they are just a piece in the puzzle.
“We are cooperating with our UK partners but this matter is still under investigation and I cannot provide any more details,” said Chizuma.
Under the UK anti-corruption laws, UK citizens and residents can be prosecuted for corruption abroad but a legal expert we spoke to argues that the Malawi government dealings are not supposed to be under foreign interference.
And Sattar’s lawyer Gilbert Khonyongwa, in court documents, argued that, according to the law it is only the office of the Attorney General (AG) that is authorised to offer assistance and share evidence or information obtained from investigations in criminal matters in Malawi with foreign governments.
In his ruling, Justice Mike Tembo, as Sattar sought judicial review against the involvement of ACB in the matter, agreed that it is only the AG who is the appropriate authority when it comes to similar requests under Financial Crimes Act.
Talking about alleged maladministration in handling government contracts, Britain has a plateful of its own mess emanating from multi-billion pounds deals with the ruling Conservative Party and the Prime Minister at the helm of mounting accusations.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the United Kingdom government has awarded thousands of contracts to private companies, spending billions of pounds of public money in the process.
They covered everything from Covid personal protective equipment (PPE) – masks, gowns and gloves – to services such as researching public opinion about the government’s Covid measures.
But the way these contracts have been awarded – and the huge sums of money involved – have led to accusations of a lack of transparency.
The courts have ruled against the government in two cases, according to the BBC.
Was it going to be appropriate for Malawi’s ACB to open investigations into the scandal and ask the NCA to cooperate in the investigation? Would the UK let ACB send investigators to raid homes and offices of suppliers in London and Manchester?
The answer to this query is anyone’s guess.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article are those of the author not necessarily of The Maravi Post or Editor