The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has said it is not in support of the idea of creating a National Prosecution Authority (NPA) in Malawi.
The NPA is a government agency that is responsible for State prosecutions and also helps in coordinating all the cases to help facilitate effective prosecution.
ACB Deputy Director General Hillary Chilomba said this when he appeared before the Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament Tuesday.
According to Chilomba, no research has been conducted to show that the current system of prosecuting cases is faulty.
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He said when people are introducing something, there must be research done to unearth any mischief.
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Chilomba said some jurisdictions such as South Africa are even contemplating moving away from the NPA arrangement.
“We, as ACB, are saying more research needs to be done because whenever you are introducing something, research must be done, which must bring what we call a mischief. In other words, it must indicate what problem is there.
“Currently, we are saying that we have not seen that research paper, where they were supposed to show the problem. So, as at now, our position is that at least we knew the mischief. So, the current arrangement we have, we think, is the best,” Chilomba said.
He was quick to note that, if adopted, the NPA would bring its own challenges, saying it would mean that all the prosecution would be done by the new institution and that the ACB might be left with corruption prevention activities and investigations.
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Legal Affairs Committee Chairperson Albert Mbawala said the committee heard from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, during a recent meeting in Salima District, on plans to introduce the NPA.
Mbawala said the committee has decided to be proactive on the matter by engaging stakeholders to hear their views.
He observed that the committee will, this week, meet the stakeholders to get their opinion on the matter.
Stakeholders lined up by the committee include the Malawi Police Service, the Financial Intelligence Authority, the Malawi Law Society and the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.
