Fisd directors’ case adjourned to Nov 14

The Lilongwe Chief Resident Magistrate’s Court yesterday adjourned to November 14 the case in which four directors of Foundation for Irrigation Sustainable Development (Fisd) Limited are accused of receiving double payment for a project.

Before the adjournment, the State yesterday paraded its third witness, Joyce Jambo, who works as procurement specialist in the project Fisd was contracted to construct water infrastructure in Ntcheu District.

In her testimony which lasting 30 minutes, the witness said her role in the project included preparation of bid documents, conducting evaluation and supervision.

During cross-examination, defence lawyers Gift Nankhuni and Khwima Mchizi asked Jambo if she had evidence against the suspects to which she responded: “At this time I do not have any evidence”. 

The witness said she only came to know about the alleged double payment after getting information from the finance section of the project.

Her line of explanation was similar to that of the second State witness Kondwani Msowoya, a project coordinator who on Monday had a six-hour long cross-examination.

The State’s first witness is Moses Mwakilama, an official from the Project Implementing Unit whose cross-examination lasted for about four hours.

In the case, four Fisd Limited directors Moses Chirambo, Frank Mwenechanya, Kondwani Nanchukwa and Arthur Mpama are suspected to have received double payment of about K268.7 million for the water Ntcheu project in Ntcheu which the Ministry of Agriculture was implementing.

The project was funded by the African Development Bank.