ACB probes JB initiative
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) is investigating donations made to the Mudzi Transformation Trust, an initiative of former president Joyce Banda.
But the bureau has refused to indicate whether Banda is also under probe.
In a written response to a questionnaire on the probe, ACB senior public relations officer Egrita Ndala said the investigations were on-indicate whether prosecution will commence before the investigation is concluded. going. She could not
She said: “The Anti-Corruption Bureau is continuing with investigations on the donations that were made to Mudzi Transformation Trust. The investigation
in a position to discuss details of the investigation at this point as that may prejudice the investigation process.”
The five-year project, which started in 2013, sought to build houses for vulnerable people with a target of 20 000 villages nationwide. However, just over 500 houses were built at the end of Banda’s term in May 2014.
The ACB investigation is in relation to donations companies exploring for oil on Lake Malawi made to the trust, among them drugs, medical supplies and maize.
An ACB source indicated that the investigation is donated drugs and medical supplies worth over $1 million (about K730 million) handed over to Banda at Kamuzu Palace in Lilongwe in March 2014.
In February 2014, the Khalifa Bin Zayed Foundation of United Arab Emirates also donated 13 500 metric tonnes of maize which Banda directed should be handled through Mudzi Transformation Trust. Parliamentary candidates for Banda’s People’s Party (PP) were tasked with the job of identifying beneficiaries.
The source said the donations were allegedly part of the corporate social responsibility component of the licences awarded to the companies, but these were misused.
Mudzi Transformation Trust was established through the Trustee Incorporation Act in 2013 but it has remained inactive since Banda went out of government in June 2014.
Banda launched the initiative in May 2013 at Nthoso Village, Traditional Authority Khongoni in Lilongwe.
