Chikadya chides SPC role, as Mera board quits
Former Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority ( Mera ) board chairperson Leonnard Chikadya has chided Secretary to the President and Cabinet (SPC) Zanga- Zanga Chikhosi for chairing boards of several parastatals.
He said this in his resignation letter from the Mera board dated February 26 2022, in which he has put it into perspective that Chikhosi’s presence in the various boards is, among others, the cause of Mera board’s failure to play its oversight role.
Chikadya said: “It would be extremely difficult for the Mera board to provide oversight of regulation on any institution where the chairperson is the SPC, who also heads the civil service.
“The recent PAC [Public Appointments Committee] report to Parliament where
they have recommended removal of the SPC is being blamed on the Mera board as the source of PAC recommendations.”
He cites a scenario where the National Oil Company of Malawi (Nocma), which Chikhosi chairs, continues to receive fuel supplies despite Mera not approving premium fuel contracts.
According to Chikadya, Mera board refused to grant
the approval on account of the uncompetitive premiums, which he said would unduly burden Malawians with frequent fuel pump price rises.
Chikadya said such unfortunate events affecting Mera board have potential to downgrade the credibility of the energy regulatory body among its peer regional bodies that advocate for independence of local energy regulatory bodies from political or any other type of influence.
Among others, Mera is a signatory of regional regulatory bodies that include the Regional Energy Regulating Association, Regional Association of Energy Regulators for Eastern and Southern Africa and the African Forum for
Utility Regulators.
Early this month, PAC proposed an amendment of laws that designate the SPC to serve as board chairperson of statutory corporations.
In a report presented in Parliament, PAC chairperson Joyce Chitsulo observed that there are serious problems in institutions whose boards are chaired by the SPC.
For instance, Chitsulo cited the fuel procurement dispute between Nocma and Mera, saying her committee noted that Nocma was undermining Mera’s authority because of the power of its chairperson.
Yesterday, Chitsulo said the entire Mera board had resigned ahead of a hearing which began in Blantyre on Saturday.
Last year, the office of the Ombudsman also received a complaint on alleged conflict of interest arising from the SPC’s chairmanship role at Nocma.
Chikhosi currently chairs Nocma, Electricity Generation Company (Egenco), Power Market Limited (PML) and the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets Authority (PPDA), among others
