Board gives in to pressure
Northern Region Water Board (NRWB) has postponed a two-day meeting for shortlisting chief executive officer (CEO) candidates following a public outcry over a budget pegged at around K13 million.
In an interview on Tuesday, the parastatal’s board chairperson Frank Mwenifumbo confirmed the postponement after The Nation, in its June 20 2023 edition, published a story revealing that the NRWB was bankrolling a 15-member delegation to conduct the shortlisting in Nkhata Bay.
He said: “Even though we have not flouted any legal provisions in the preparation of shortlisting, the board in concert with the line Ministry of Water and Sanitation has postponed the exercise to respond to the public outcry on the cost of the exercise.”
The two-day event was scheduled to start today, according to a memo from the NRWB director of human resources and administration office to the acting CEO seeking approval of the funds.
Meanwhile, Mwenifumbo has said among other resolutions to cut the budget is the decision to shift the meeting from Nkhata Bay, about 50 kilometres away, to the NRWB head office.
“Some of the measures being considered include moving the venue of the meeting from Chatonda Lodge to Kawiluwilu House [NRWB offices] and reducing the number of days. This, we hope, will significantly reduce the cost,” he said.
But Mwenifumbo could not immediately indicate the amount expected to be saved.
The Malawi Government has been advocating for reduced expenditure among its departments and agencies as the nation tries to swivel from its economic turmoil worsened by natural disasters and disease outbreaks.
The 15-member delegation included Mwenifumbo and four other NRWB board members, namely, Florence Nthakomwa Ngabanira Chatata, James Mwaisemba and the Reverend Douglas Chipofya.
Others are from the Statutory Corporation Department, NRWB staff, Department of Human Resource Management and Development and the Ministry of Water and Sanitation, according to the memo.
The budget showed that only K560 000 was meant to cater for venue services while the rest were for travel, accommodation and other additional allowances.
A majority of the board members and officials from other departments were expected to pocket between K1 million and K1.4 million.
Meanwhile, corporate governance expert Richard Tchereko has said parastatals can cut the cost of recruiting executives by letting a small group conduct the shortlisting.
He said: “Shortlisting is just a stage in the entire recruitment process and it is about identifying job applicants that meet the job criteria. This stage of recruitment produces candidates that will likely be invited for job interviews.
“If there are already laid down criteria for the job, then few officers can do shortlisting in the comfort of their office. These could be human resource practitioners in liaison with recruiting manager or authority.
“Thereafter, the initial shortlist report may be shared with other stakeholders for verification.”
Government recently approved a 50 percent water tariff hike for the water boards amid an outcry that they were financially struggling, resulting in poor service delivery.
Minister of Information and Digitisation Moses Kunkuyu last month said NRWB made a K13.8 billion loss between 2020 and 2022.
