Recently fired Blantyre Water Board (BWB) chief executive officer Yeremiah Chihana has filed a K193 billion compensation claim to his former employer for unfair dismissal, consequential injury to his professional standing and earning capacity.
Through a demand letter dated October 8 2026 signed by his lawyer Michael Goba Chipeta, Chihana is disputing the justification, procedural fairness and proportionality of his dismissal.
He said he will pursue the compensation claim through the Industrial Relations Court (IRC) instead of seeking reinstatement as BWB CEO.
Reads the letter: “Our client’s presently instructed compensation demand is K193 billion for unfair dismissal and the consequential injury alleged to his professional standing and earning capacity.
“In addition, he claims the accrued and future contractual losses. He requires payment or a substantive resolution within seven days after receipt of this letter.”
BWB last week summarily dismissed Chihana and through an October 7 2026 letter asked him to hand over a Ford Ranger, a laptop and a Samsung S26 Ultra smartphone by October 9 2026 as well as vacate its institutional house by November 7 2026.
In its letter firing Chihana, BWB said he did not attend the disciplinary hearing despite being served with notice, but Chipeta said his client did not attend the hearing because he believed dismissal was predetermined.
BWB board chairperson Stanley Chirwa in an interview yesterday said the board was yet to discuss the demand.
“Needless to say, the claim is rather odd considering that due process was followed with regards to his dismissal with full adherence to his contract, staff service regulations for Blantyre Water Board, the employment laws of Malawi as well as the rules of natural justice,” he said in a written response.
Chirwa, himself a private practice lawyer, said the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal last week awarded the board costs in Chihana’s other unsuccessful claim.
On October 6 2026, the Supreme Court dismissed Chihana’s application to put aside implementation of the High Court of Malawi judgement and injunction restraining BWB from enforcing his suspension, saying an effective remedy was available before the IRC.
The BWB board suspended Chihana to pave the way for a disciplinary inquiry into allegations including of misrepresentation, unauthorised appointments and a K500 million overdraft allegedly secured without the board’s approval.
Since his appointment in April, Chihana has had a strained relationship with the BWB board of directors, a development that prompted the workers union to seek President Peter Mutharika’s intervention to remove both Chihana and Chirwa for the good of the water utility.
BWB has since replaced Chihana with its former director of finance Henri Bakuwa in a process that has raised eyebrows over adherence to the recruitment due process considering the timeline between the dismissal and recruitment of the successor.
