Police arrest Treasury official for alleged fraud

Fiscal Police have arrested an official in the Accountant General’s Department for allegedly engaging in fraudulent activities that deprived the public purse of resources.

Treasury sources said Fiscal Police investigations established that some officers were drawing money in form of field allowances from government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to fast-track processing of payment using the Integrated Financial Management Information System (Ifmis), the government’s electronic payment platform.

Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs spokesperson Taurai Banda confirmed in a statement that there was an ongoing investigation into the matter and that an officer in the Accountant General’s Department was arrested.

Reads the statement in part: “Specifically, the new Ifmis has been instrumental in assisting the government with monitoring transactions, identifying irregularities, and improving efficiency in public service delivery in accordance with laws of Malawi.

“The investigation has since successfully exposed what appears to be fraudulent activities perpetrated by personnel in the Accountant General’s Department for personal gain. As such, in pursuit of the government’s policy of ending corruption and upholding the rule of law, the ministry referred the matter to the Fiscal Police for the enforcement of any laws violated by suspected culprits, resulting in the arrest of at least one officer.”

In a separate interview yesterday, National Police deputy spokesperson Harry Namwaza identified the arrested official as Estone Sani.

He said: “I can confirm about the arrest in relation to irregular transactions at the Accountant General’s office. The investigations are still ongoing, so I really cannot say much for now.”

Treasury sources said there is a long-standing practice where some MDAs pay allowances to officers in the Accountant General’s office to fast-track payment of field allowances.

One source said: “What happens is that if you have a field trip or an activity and you request for funding, you have to include some officials from the Accountant General’s office to help you get the payment on time. Otherwise, if you do not do that they will delay processing of your payment by citing Ifmis challenges.”

Another source said governance institutions such as the Anti-Corruption Bureau, Malawi Human Rights Commission, the Office of the Ombudsman and Legal Aid Bureau have usually suffered delayed disbursement of payment because they are unwilling to cut corners and palm oil officers at the Accountant General.