APM, Ministers assets under audit

The wealth of President Peter Mutharika and his senior government officials, will from early next month come under severe scrutiny as the Office of Director of Public Officers’ Assets Declarations moves to verify various declarations the public officials made. Nation on Sunday understands all the declared assets of the officials, among them, houses, bank accounts and vehicles, will be verified through a stringent investigation.

Director in the Office of Public Officers’ Assets Declarations Christopher Tukula said not all public officials’ declarations will be verified during this exercise due to lack of resources.

He said the department received funding on July 7 to conduct the partial verification exercise.

The assets—located both in the country and abroad—will be verified by experts, but the Office of Public Declarations said all officials will be notified ahead of any investigation.

Tukula said despite the piece-meal funding that has hampered preparations of the exercise and will affect its scope, top government officials, including the President will be a priority due to public interest.

According to Tukula, the department initially planned to spend K66 million during the financial year for the verification exercise, but after budget cuts the exercise will now cost K22 million.

But he admitted that it will be virtually impossible to verify all assets at a go.

Tukula, said the funding woes the office is currently facing will not affect its ability to effectively scrutinise the declarations, including those that demand that its officers travel abroad, if the declaration fits the public scrutiny criteria.

“We will cooperate with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), banks, diplomatic missions and send officers to physically verify physical assets,” added Tukula.

“We have an action plan, we had a choice to either verify the declarations at random or targeted based on offices which have the most public scrutiny; we opted for the targeted one because we want the offices with the most public scrutiny are verified,” said Tukula.

Mutharika and his administration’s senior officers became the first public officials to declare their assets and wealth in Malawi this year following Parliament approval of a new law that forces public officers to declare their wealth to the newly established Office of Director of Assets and Liabilities.

Mutharika initially declared wealth estimated at around K4.4 billion but the figure was revised down by the presidency after it raised eyebrows with State House saying certain figures were erroneously indicated.

State House said the figure was arrived at by a mistake on his USA bank accounts initially declared $8 million (K3.4 billion) instead of $2 million (around K84 million).

The information was released in detail last May alongside declarations by former president Joyce Banda, current Vice-President Saulos Chilima, Speaker of the National Assembly Richard Msowoya and leader of opposition Lazarus Chakwera, among others.

State House press secretary Gerald Viola told Nation on Sunday on Saturday, Mutharika was ready to support the process and cooperate with the law enforcement agency on the matter.

“As you know, the President set the pace on the matter and he is looking forward to lead by example. He will continue working and cooperating with the Office of the Director of Public Officers’ Assets Declarations to the very end,” said Viola.

His predecessor Joyce Banda declared assets valued at K461.5 million besides listing several properties which she just indicated as being co-owned with her husband, retired Chief Justice Richard Banda.

Vice-President Saulosi Chilima declared, among others, two houses both in Lilongwe (Area 43 and 18) valued at K51 million, six plots valued at over K15.8 million; four vehicles worth K65 million while his wife has three vehicles whose total value is K33.2 million.

His joint assets with partners include a plot in Mangochi. He also owns a farm in Bwanje, Ntcheu. He has shares in one private company worth over K200 million while his wife has shares in TNM and NBS Bank.

The Public Officers (Declaration of Assets Liabilities and Business Interests) Act 18.(1) says a listed public officer “who, without reasonable cause, fails to submit the required declaration within the time determined by this Act shall, subject to the Constitution and any other written law, be liable to be dismissed from the public office.

The second part of the section warns public officers who file deliberately “inaccurate or misleading declarations” of committing an offence punishable by a fine of K500 000 and imprisonment for two years.

The law is designed to curb soaring corruption by public officials and came into effect shortly after the infamous Cashgate that saw over K24 billion of public wealth stolen by civil servants, politicians and businesspeople in 2013.

Under the new law, the public can apply to access the declarations upon application; a provision which the media utilised to publicise the wealth of the senior national figures.