The Forum for National Development (FND) on Wednesday petitioned government through the Lilongwe City Council, asking all Cabinet ministers and senior civil servants to declare their assets in light of the cashgate scam.
In the petition signed by the group’s chairperson Bright Kampaundi and national coordinator Fryson Chonzi and presented to the council’s chief executive Richard Hara, the forum also asked government to repossess its houses sold to politicians and Cabinet ministers without following procedures.
“Can all the present ministers, members of Parliament and senior civil servants make a declaration of assets stating what they have, how they acquired what they have and also business interests they have?” reads the petition in part.
On the houses sold to politicians, FND, however, mainly focused on DPP officials and Bineth Trust, leaving out top government officials in the current Joyce Banda administration.
“Malawi has been going through the following pains: …hardworking, taxpaying citizens failing to get a plot in suburb Areas of 43, 9, 12, 47, Nyambadwe and BCA Hill which they would honestly pay for yet politicians were acquiring this land for free.
“Honest citizens failing to get business to supply products and services to government which they would have honoured, yet others were being paid for not offering any services.
“Government owing billions to service providers and suppliers and failing to pay, yet somebody was amassing wealth for doing nothing,” reads the petition in part.
The forum has also asked the council to review all sales of commercial and residential plots in various locations in Lilongwe which it claims politicians obtained through alleged abuse of power.
