Cashgate buses at Police Headquarters

Four out of the six buses suspected to have been bought using Capital Hill cashgate money siphoned through the Ministry of Tourism are now parked at the National Police Headquarters at Area 30 in Lilongwe.

On Friday, the buses were seen parked at the premises of Automotive Products Limited (APL) in Lilongwe, the franchise dealer for Scania, who sold the Ministry of Tourism six 65-seater Torino Marcopolo buses at about K520 million (about $1.3m).

In an interview yesterday, National Police deputy spokesperson Kelvin Maigwa said the four buses have been impounded because investigations are still underway to get to the bottom of the matter.

“We have re-arrested Ministry of Tourism chief tourism officer Leonard Kalonga because he is the one who sourced quotations for the buses. The charges placed on him are money laundering and theft by public servant,” said Maigwa.

Kalonga was first arrested on October 17 by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) for allegedly conniving with different people to defraud government.

According to Maigwa, police are aware that six buses were purchased, and two are yet to be delivered “but they will also be confiscated once they are in.”

Documents that police, ACB, auditors and fiscal police have indicated that the ministry paid the K520 million through a cheque co-signed by the arrested principal accountant to government Roosevelt Ndovie.

Minister of Tourism Moses Kunkuyu is on record to have said he knows nothing about the buses.