Prosecute officials in K14bn procurement mess, Escom told

 Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources and Climate has called for prosecution of people behind the K14 billion misprocurement at Escom.

They said the mess is the reason for the entity’s failure to connect customers.

The committee made the recommendation yesterday in Lilongwe when Escom officials appeared before it to explain reasons for delays in connecting customers who had applied and paid for electricity connection.

Currently, there is a backlog of 52 000 applications dating from 2018 and Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) blames it on lack of financing.

However, Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources and Climate Change chairperson Welani Chilenga said Malawians are suffering because of

 fraud and misprocurement that happened at Escom.

He said the company mismanaged K14 billion mostly on items that it did not need.

Chilenga said: “They are telling us that they are failing to connect customers because of the unbundling of Escom that took place in 2016. We are not convinced of those reasons.

“As far as we are concerned, Escom made huge losses to the tune of K14 billion through misprocurement and corruption. A good example is what transpired in Escom and Aggreko where five million litres of fuel worth about K4 billion was lost.”

He said that Escom also made a lot of misprocurement.

“They bought envelopes worth K26 million which they are not able to use. They will use them up to 22 years. They bought bolts and nuts which they will use for the next 16 years. They bought one empty container at K26 million when its value is K3 million.

“There were quite a number of mis procurement totalling about K14 billion and it has led to Escom to become bankrupt. They do not have money,” Chilenga said.

He wondered why some people involved in the mess Chilenga added that the committee will report to Parliament on the need to prosecute people behind the misprocurements.

Escom acting chief executive officer Clement Kanyama, who indicated that lack of financing was the reason for the parastatal’s failure to

connect people.

He said the company plans to clear the backlog of electricity connection applications by December this year.

Kanyama said: “Escom will connect about 90 000 customers using an estimated cost K19 billion. and 52 000 will be part of the people covered.

He said money used will be a World Bank loan but customers will have to contribute 25 percent.

“Based on our workplans we should be able to clear the backlog in new connections through a loan under the Malawi Electricity Access Project as wel l as engaging contractors to help beef up the implementation arrangement,” Kanyama said

.