Goodall courts critics of MSB sale
Under pressure to explain circumstances surrounding the proposed sale of the wholly State-owned Malawi Savings Bank (MSB), Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development Goodall Gondwe has embarked on a mission to engage critics of the transaction.
In an interview in Lilongwe yesterday, Gondwe said the list of his targets include opposition political party leaders and civil society organisations (CSOs).
Earlier this year, government, through the Public Private Partnership Commission (PPPC), invited bids from strategic investors to buy stakes in MSB and Indebank Limited, which Capital Hill partially owns.
Through the transactions, government wanted to, among other things, ensure that MSB and Indebank met new Basel II regulatory requirements in terms of capitalisation.
National Bank of Malawi (NBM) has since been named as the preferred bidder for Indebank while FDH Financial Holdings Limited—owners of FDH Bank—was the sole bidder of MSB.
But the MSB deal is facing resistance from several stakeholders, including opposition parties, CSOs and more recently concerned MSB employees.
Two weeks ago, revelations by The Nation that government had taken over MSB’s toxic loans worth K6.4 billion (US$1.4 million) owed by politically linked companies and individuals such as Mulli Brothers Limited (MBL) Holdings attracted public anger.
More pressure has come from the Malawi Congress Party (MCP), the major opposition grouping represented in Parliament, which has been vocal against the disposal of MSB. MCP is among the stakeholders Gondwe is engaging.
MCP spokesperson Jessie Kabwila confirmed in an interview yesterday that the party’s leadership would be meeting government officials, but party president and Leader of Opposition in Parliament Lazarus Chakwera would only give feedback to Malawians afterwards.
Gondwe has confirmed that he would be engaging the stakeholders on advice from President Mutharika.
Said Gondwe: “I will definitely be discussing with political party leaders and I might go to civil society members such as John Kapito [of Consumers Association of Malawi [Cama], but also the Public Affairs Committee [PAC] to tell them what the case is. The most important thing is that we should all understand why we have come to this stage.”
