Govt appoints Justice Mzikamanda ACB boss

Malawi government has appointed High Court Judge Rezine Mzikamanda as the new Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) director.

But he will have to be approved by Parliament before he can fill the position that has been vacant for close to five months.

A highly placed government source on Saturday said government submitted Justice Mzikamanda’s name to the Public Appointments Committee of Parliament for confirmation.

Should Mzikamanda be accepted by the committee, he will replace Alex Nampota who is now waiting for government to finalise his disengagement from the bureau following an out-of-court settlement.

His lawyer Samuel Tembenu confirmed the settlement, but refused to provide details of the deal.

He said he does not see anything wrong in government appointing a replacement now.

The absence of the ACB director and deputy director has been a major concern to donors and analysts who argued that it has compromised the fight against corruption in the country. 

Britain’s Department for International Development (DfID) had since June this year suspended its support to ACB over the issue.

Norway joined other donors in arguing that delays in appointing the ACB director eroded the confidence they have in government’s commitment to combating corruption.