In Malawi, President Bingu Wa Mutharika’s declared war on corruption received a significant boost after the Public Appointment Committee (PAC) of parliament appointed a Alexious Nampota as the new anti corruption czar to lead the Anti-Corruption Bureau. President Mutharika had sacked two previous directors of the anti-corruption body over graft charges. He also clashed with members of the parliamentary appointment committee after they refused to confirm a previous nominee.
The new director said fighting corruption is his priority. He also said he would not succumb to political pressure from any quarter. Mutharika appointed Nampota in October to replace police commissioner Tumalisye Ndovi who was fired after a short spell for pocketing two salaries.
Joseph Njobvuyalema is the chairman of Malawi’s Public Appointments committee. From the capital Lilongwe, he tells reporter Peter Clottey that the new director is the most qualified to hold the position.
“The process is, we undergo the normal hearing interviews whereby the appointee is questioned to answer some questions concerning how he intends to perform the functions of the office of the director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, and that is done through normal questions. There is a panel of 23 members of parliamentarians coming from different political parties. So they frame questions as they wish as long as they have some relevance to the job of the director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau,” Njobvuyalema said.
He said the committee believes the new director has what it takes to fight what he described as endemic corruption in public institutions.
“This particular one has the experience. Well of course he has the academic as well as professional qualification, but in addition to that he has the experience. He has worked in the bureau for a period of seven years. He was the deputy director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau. Is just that we were told his contract was not renewed. However, when we interviewed him we discovered that he has a lot of interest in the work of fighting corruption and we felt the country would benefit out of his experience,” he pointed out.
Njobvuyalema said the committee reposes great confidence in the ability of the new director of the Anti-corruption Bureau.
“Definitely, we think so. From what he has expressed in our committee he managed to convinces us and we have a lot of hope that he would not be subjected to political manipulation,” Njobvuyalema said.
He said the new director assured the committee he would not kowtow to political pressure.
“He declared that he would be professional as possible and he actually committed himself to the fact that he wouldn’t bow down to any political manipulation, which we think makes a lot of sense indeed,” he noted.]
