The Lilongwe Chief Resident Magistrate’s Court has ordered the State against arresting former minister of Finance Simplex Chithyola Banda in criminal cases, stating that any proceedings should start by way of summons.
Making a ruling on an application by the Leader of Opposition in Parliament through his lawyer George Kadzipatike against an Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) warrant of arrest, chief resident magistrate Austin Banda yesterday said conditions attached to Chithyola Banda’s previous bail still stand.
Chithyola. | Nation
“The conditions which were attached to the accused person’s release on bail pending trial in the Principal Resident Magistrate Court sitting at Lilongwe in Criminal Case No. 323 of 2026 shall equally apply to the accused person in this matter,” reads the order.
The ACB obtained the warrant of arrest against Chithyola Banda in connection with the Mega Farms Programme.
Kadzipatike challenged the warrant issued on Friday by the same court, arguing that the State was abusing its powers by seeking to arrest his client while he is on bail in another case.
He argued that the State could instead begin proceedings by way of summons.
In an interview yesterday, Kadzipatike said the main ground for setting aside the warrant was that Chithyola Banda is already on bail in another case and has been complying with the conditions.
ACB spokesperson Jacqueline Ngongonda did not respond to calls seeking comment yesterday.
Chithyola Banda is suspected of misusing his office during his tenure as minister in the immediate past Malawi Congress Party (MCO) administration.
He is alleged to have approved about K29.5 billion in extra-budgetary funding for the Mega Farms Project without justification, benefiting the Greenbelt Authority (GBA). The funds were allegedly channelled outside the official government budget process.
In a separate matter before the Principal Resident Magistrate’s Court, Chithyola Banda is accused of authorising payments that allegedly cost the government K25 billion in the controversial East Bridge fertiliser deal.
He was arrested on April 12 and charged with abuse of office before being released on bail on April 14, 2026.
The State alleges that, while serving as Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs between October 2023 and September 2025, Banda abused his office for the advantage of East Bridge Romania Co. Ltd by authorising several payments to the Smallholder Farmers Fertiliser Revolving Fund of Malawi (SFFRFM) through the Ministry of Agriculture.
East Bridge was awarded a contract to supply 600 000 metric tonnes of fertiliser to SFFRFM in exchange for farm produce, but the fertiliser was allegedly never supplied.
His bail conditions include paying a K2 million bail bond, providing two sureties bonded at K5 million non-cash each, reporting to police fortnightly on Wednesday and surrendering his travel documents to the court.
