The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has revealed that it has unearthed attempts by some individuals to covertly transfer ownership of government vehicles into private hands.
ACB Director General Gabriel Chembezi disclosed the development in Lilongwe yesterday after storming the Department of Road Traffic and Safety Services (DRTSS) regional offices, where allegations of bribery and illicit payments related to change-of-ownership processes have surfaced.
The visit came weeks after, on November 13 this year, the ACB reinstated its vetting and clearance system for all change-of-ownership applications involving motor vehicles, houses, and land.
The measure aims to prevent individuals from concealing or disposing of property suspected to have been acquired corruptly.
Chembezi said the renewed scrutiny was already yielding “significant” findings.
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“Some people are even trying to change ownership of government vehicles,” he told The Daily Times.
“We know that there are people who are not happy with this process… Their aim is to frustrate it so that they can conceal property but we are not going to allow that,” he added.
Chembezi further disclosed that his office has been receiving reports of corruption at DRTSS, where applicants seeking to change vehicle ownership are allegedly being instructed to pay bribes to fast-track ACB clearance.
“We did our surveillance today,” he said. “We found someone who was asked to pay K190,000 to have their vehicle vetted and cleared faster. K50,000 was for the person soliciting the bribe, another K50,000 for an insider at Road Traffic, and the rest supposedly for an ACB employee. That has happened.”
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The ACB chief dismissed claims that the bureau causes delays in processing clearance requests, saying the institution is clearing all cases within three days.
He faulted the DRTSS for displaying outdated vetting and clearance information, a development he said was creating an impression of backlog.
“They are showing that the last cleared vehicles were processed on 21 November, yet I cleared the most recent batch last Friday, on December 4.
“When people see outdated information, unscrupulous people take advantage of the situation and tell the motorists to pay if they want their vehicles cleared faster. But that is false. The vetting process at ACB is prompt and efficient.”
Chembezi warned that the bureau would arrest, investigate and prosecute all individuals involved in the bribery scheme.
He described the interference as a coordinated effort to derail the vetting system, which he said would remain in force until ongoing investigations were completed.
“No one should lie to Malawians that they need to pay bribes for ACB clearance. We will not allow anyone to frustrate this process,” Chembezi said.
DTRSS Spokesperson Angelina Makwecha said the department would wait for ACB investigations on bribery allegations before commenting on the issue.
