By Deborah Madeya:
Local Government, Unity and Culture Minister Richard Chimwendo Banda has urged local council officials to use resources allocated for public projects prudently.
“Failure to control government resources and funds affects service delivery,” Chimwendo Banda told council officials in Blantyre during the Southern Region quarterly coordination meeting.
The meeting attracted council officials.
“What we will be doing now is not transferring officers who are involved in such malpractices; rather, we will be ensuring that they face the long arm of the law. If you, as a public officer, misuse funds at a certain council you must go and wait for the court of law to clear you. Then, and only then, can you go back to work,” Chimwendo Banda added.
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He further urged district commissioners (DCs) to report political leaders who pressurise them on funds’ use.
“The DC, director of finance and the director of public works are the ones that are mandated to approve anything related to finances. As such, if anyone comes [to you] and forces you [to use funds], that is abuse of power. You need to report those to the Anti-Corruption Bureau or even the police.
“But if you come out later, after releasing the funds, and say ‘I was forced’, that excuse will not count,” Chimwendo Banda said.
His sentiments come at a time Zomba City, Chiradzulu and Machinga councils failed to access over K2 billion Governance to Enable Service Delivery funds allocated last year.
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Meanwhile, Malawi Local Government Association Executive Director Hadrod Mkandawire has urged the Central Government to slow down on transferring council officials.
“It is unfair to hold accountable someone who has been at a council for less than a year. How could you hold accountable someone who has been at a council for two months?
“So, this is another area the government needs to consider. At least keep officers for at least three years at the same place so that they can be held accountable if anything goes wrong,” Mkandawire said.
The meeting attracted officials from 12 Southern Region councils.
