Former minister of Finance Joseph Mwanamvekha and three others have dragged the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee, accusing him of selective justice and abuse of office.
Mwanamvekha, along with UTM Party president and former Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) governor Dalitso Kabambe, former RBM deputy governor Henry Mathanga and former Secretary to the Treasury Cliff Chiunda, argue that the DPP’s handling of high-profile financial crimes cases is suspicious.
Their complaint centres on three ongoing cases before the High Court of Malawi Financial Crimes Division, each involving high-value transactions authorised during the complainants’ service in various roles ranging from central bank governance to cabinet-level leadership.
One case involves the alleged unlawful approval of a $350 million loan facility from the African Export-Import Bank.
Filed through Maele Law Practice, the 64-page complaint alleges that the prosecutions violate their constitutional right to equal protection under the law, as enshrined in Section 20 of the Constitution.
“The DPP cannot lawfully decide to prosecute some board members and leave others when the resolution in question was passed unanimously. That is the essence of selective prosecution,” the complaint dated May 5, 2025, reads.
The complaint specifically names Grant Kabango and Maria Msiska, both of whom were active and voting members of the RBM Board that approved the $350 million facility and the K6.2 billion Covid-19 donation but are not under prosecution.
The other committee members were Pius Mulipa, Aleksander Kalanda and Martin Phangaphanga (all deceased).
Further reads the claim: “The DPP opted to prosecute the complainants herein leaving out other members of the Board who were part of the decision to approve the $350 million facility.
“There is no basis for leaving out the other board members who approved the facility at all.”
The complaint further observes that the RBM annual reports, at the material time, were being prepared by Grant Thornton which “clearly acknowledges that they were given unrestricted access to all the materials that they needed.”
“Notably, the DPP has left out the auditors who prepared the Financial Statements and other members of the Board who approved the financial reports and counter-signed them,” the former government officials argue.
According to the complaint, the transaction was sanctioned by the Attorney General (AG) and received full approval from the RBM board.
In a separate case, the accused are said to have conspired to authorise a K6.2 billion donation to the government’s Covid-19 response without due process.
However, the complainants maintain that the donation was part of the bank’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme and backed by a formal board resolution.
The complaint also raises concerns about discrepancies in the prosecution of companies involved in a fertiliser import scheme.
Government, through RBM, facilitated the opening of letters of credit on behalf of suppliers contracted to deliver strategic imports such as fuel, medicines, and fertiliser.
The complainants drew support from a recent ruling by Justice Redson Kapindu, who declined to grant Kabambe permission to commence judicial review proceedings, but directed that such concerns be addressed through Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee.
The group is now requesting a stay of all pending cases until the Legal Affairs Committee determines whether the DPP’s decisions comply with constitutional standards.
DPP Masauko Chamkakala, in a response to our questionnaire on Saturday, said he can only comprehensively respond when he has sight of the nature and extent of the complaint.
“Suffice to say that the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions strives to be independent and professional in its conduct as it executes the solemn duty of prosecuting criminal offences in Malawi,” he said.
Legal Affairs Committee chairperson Albert Mbawala said he could not immediately comment.
