I want to rest my mind, Chizuma ends ACB journey

I want to rest my mind [and] my body,” said immediate past Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) director general Martha Chizuma in her parting shot yesterday.

This marked the end of her contract and with it, her three-year reign at the graft fighting body.

“I have decided not to renew my contract, [I want] to be with my little boys. I will look at other opportunities afterwards,” she remarked in a WhatsApp response to our questionnaire.

She came to the bureau in 2021 after making a name as a no-nonsense Ombudsman with tact in investigating seemingly complicated cases.

When Nation on Sunday asked her to assess her reign at ACB, she sent a flier with bullets of her achievements showing 639 completed investigations, 58 completed prosecutions plus 20 awaiting judgement.

“[About] K881m or $550 000 worth of assets forfeited to Malawi Government. Houses, cars, and buildings, worth billions of kwacha preserved waiting forfeiture,” part of the flier reads.

Chizuma’s reign was eventful. She was arrested over a leaked audio conversation with a suspected bureau outsider before President Lazarus Chakwera intervened with a release order.

She also collaborated with the United Kingdom’s National Crimes Agency (NCA) in suspected corrupt cases linked to businessperson Zuneth Sattar, which led to the arrest of Vice-President Saulos Chilima, former Police Inspector General George Kainja and other high profile government officers.

The State has, however, discontinued the case against Chilima.

Chizuma will also be commended for ensuring that the ACB does not seek consent from the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). This was after she publicly stated that the DPP’s office was frustrating efforts in prosecuting some cases as the DPP was not granting consent.

This resulted in the Corrupt Practices Act being amended and assented to by the President.

Under Chizuma’s tenure, the ACB managed to recruit more prosecutors and Treasury increased funding from K6 billion in 2022, K7.8 billion in the previous fiscal year and K8.6 billion in the current financial year.

Assessing her tenure, private practice lawyer Gladwell Majekete notes that Chizuma was affected by State operatives throwing spanners into her works.

“The initial stages of her tenure had goodwill from the appointing authority, but things changed when the appointing authority realised she wanted to exercise her independence,” he said in a response to our questionnaire yesterday.

Her arrest, Majekete says, was an example of the bid to stop her in her tracks.

“The leaked audio only confirmed party zealots’ fears that she could not spare anyone and at that point drama unfolded; the presidential address whose tone was clear.

“The revelations by the director that ACB could go four months without funding, if true, speaks volumes of the extent to which ACB as a key institution in the fight against corruption is being supported,” the lawyer said.

Meanwhile, Centre for Transparency and Accountability executive director Willy Kambwandira said “in all fairness, it will be difficult to subject her to performance assessment.”

He attributed his line of thought to lack of support, saying: “She was not given support to execute her duties, and it was also evident that the whole government machinery, including other arms of government, worked to frustrate the former ACB Director General.

“The leadership too did not provide the desired political support to her and in that regard it is unfair to subject her to performance assessment.”

Meanwhile, the deputy director general Elia Bodole is, by law, the acting ACB chief.

The Corrupt Practices Act section 8 (1) reads: “If the office of the director is vacant or the Director is absent from duty or unable for any other reason to perform the functions of his office, the Deputy Director shall act as director.”