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Political parties in and outside government have condemned former President Bakili Muluzi over revelations that he imposed his own sites to be electrified under Phase IV of the Malawi rural electrification programme (Marep) and called for an investigation into the matter.
Head of Marep Gedion Nyirongo, deputy energy director Harry Chitenje and Chief Energy officer for policy and planning Lewis Mhango confirmed that the number of sites to be electrified under the fourth phase of the programme increased from 43 to 58 because of presidential directives.
Aford and Republican Party which are in a government of national unity with UDF said if what was revealed is true then it is wrong because a head of state is supposed to facilitate development of the whole country. They called for investigations to expose the truth.
“If it was true then it’s unfortunate. The head of state should facilitate development of the entire country without favour as was the case here. I hope it was not true otherwise nobody, including Aford as a party, can condone that,” said Aford secretary general Wallace Chiume.
Republican Party publicity secretary Manifesto Kayira called for investigations on the matter, saying the whole issue was unfortunate mainly because it involved a donor-driven programme.
He said his party believes in good governance and accountability by the executive and all other arms of government hence the need to investigate the issue to come to the bottom of everything because programmes is supposed to be done according to agreed guidelines.
“These things must come out fully. It is to the interest of the whole nation. We find it most it highly regrettable and deplorable if the allegations are true,” said Kayira.
Opposition parties notably MCP, PPM and Petra also called for investigations into the matter, saying what happened was not fair.
MCP second deputy president Nicholas Dausi said the whole issue should be probed so that it comes out clearly because Malawians do not want segregative allocation of development projects which he claimed was very common during the Muluzi administration.
“The reported favouritism that has affected the rural electrification programme cannot be tolerated. It’s one of the ugly sins committed by the Muluzi administration. It’s very unfair and it cannot be condoned,” said Dausi.
PPM vice president Mark Katsonga Phiri also said the matter should be investigated “to find out whether there was any hidden agenda or it was done in good faith” if it is indeed true that Muluzi imposed his own sites on the programme.
“If the former head of state added his own sites then that was wrong. We have to be systematic and work hand in hand with the donors when implementing such programmes,” he said.
Petra president Kamuzu Chibambo described the directives as deplorable and outrageous and called for a speedy investigation into the matter because “to us as a party this is not good governance”.
Chibambo called on President Bingu wa Mutharika to reverse his predecessor’s directive if some of sites have not already been electrified because it was not done on a common agenda of developing the country but to address Muluzi’s personal interests and those of the other people involved.
“This is the kind of politics we don’t condone. This is cheap and segregative politics. The constitution is very clear that everyone has a right to development,” he said.
The sites include Kapoloma area, Nyambi and Makungwa trading centres in Machinga and Malowa community day secondary school in Salima.
According to the project agreement, the total cost for Marep Phase IV programme is K680.2 million (over $6 million) of which K188,235,321.93 is from the Japanese government under the debt relief aid grant while K491,764,678.21 is financed from local resources through levy on petroleum products.
The 15 added sites could not be electrified through the Japanese grant because they were not on the agreed master plan and the ministry has to finance everything using the same levy in the range of K7 million to K10 million a month.
Muluzi spokesperson Sam Mpasu and Uladi Mussa, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs minister at the time, said in separate interviews last week there was nothing wrong with what Muluzi did because his job is to develop the country according to people’s demands.
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