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Department of Statutory Corporations toothless—MP

Member of Parliament (MP) for Ntchisi North Boniface Kadzamira (Malawi Congress Party-MCP) has said the Department of Statutory Corporations lacks a clear Act to define its authority and functions over the parastatals it is mandated to oversee.
In his contribution to the report on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises tabled in Parliament, the legislator said the department is also underfunded and has inadequate staff and equipment.
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Said Kadzamira: “The department oversees institutions which are vital to the socio-economic growth of this country, yet there are no clear guidelines as to how it is supposed to carry out its duties towards these institutions.”
According to him, the department lacks expertise to manage the 52 subverted institutions.
He said: “There is also a challenge in terms of recruitment and appointments, especially for top positions, particularly boards which in most cases are politically motivated and compromise governance of such corporations. This is one of the reasons most parastatals and commissions are underperforming. Their boards are full of appointed and non technical people who have no vision for the companies.”
Kadzamira also expressed concern over the delays in the conclusion of Cashgate cases saying it could take 30 years before the cases are concluded.
Mzimba North Member of Parliament Agnes Nyalonje (People’s Party-PP) in her reaction to the same said the public views members of Parliament with suspicion because they feel nothing is happening on the Cashgate cases.
Responding to the two MPs, Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Samuel Tembenu said judicial cases cannot be completed over night because there are a lot of stages that must be undergone before a case is concluded.
Said Tembenu: “We had planned to conclude some of the cases by June, but obviously this will not happen. Government is doing all it can to expedite the process, please bear with us.”

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One Comment

  1. Tembenu, the courts are incompetent just as the govt is. Just allocate dedicated judges to hear the cases. U need to prioritize the cases. You have unnecessarily adjournments. These cases should have been concluded last year. But you just going in circles

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