Goodall happy after budget approval
Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development Goodall Gondwe is a relieved man now that Parliament has approved the K930 billion 2015/16 National Budget he proposed to government.
In an interview yesterday, Gondwe did not hesitate to announce that he would be going home to rest after a hectic four days defending allocations to ministries and departments.
The cluster meetings, a platform where members of Parliament (MPs) scrutinised the budget, especially pleased Gondwe who commended MPs for the good exchange of views during debate on the budget and committee of supply.
The minister did not play down the potential of the demands by the opposition that his budget would not be passed if he did not produce a forensic audit into the mismanagement of funds between 2009 and 2014.
Said a visibly relieved and excited Gondwe: “There were nearly diversions in the middle relating to the so-called K92 billion [report] which I think would have derailed us, but I think we have very good rules in Parliament and we were able to resume the discussions which were very constructive.
“As a minister, this is my seventh year and I can comfortably say this was one of the better ones in terms of raising issues and we were able to change where we were able and stay where we had to stay.”
He has further explained that Parliament has appropriated K923.9 billion minus K6 billion for the Malawi Rural Electrification Programme (Marep) which would be raised through the fuel levy and could not be debated by MPs.
Gondwe first presented a national budget in Parliament in 2004 when he served as former president the late Bingu wa Mutharika’s first minister of Finance.
