By Isaac Salima:
Tobacco Commission (TC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Joseph Chidanti Malunga will be getting full pay for the next three months despite having an expired contract.
This is because the government extended his contract for three months as, at the time of the expiry of the contract, there was no board of directors to handle the issue of contract renewal or CEO replacement.
Chidanti Malunga’s contract expired on February 1 this year but, at that time, the commission had no board of directors.
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The board is mandated to hire or extend the contract of CEOs.
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The government later decided to extend the contract for three months— until April this year.
However, Chidanti Malunga has been sent on leave on full pay to pave the way for the process of recruiting a CEO.
Recently, President Lazarus Chakwera appointed members of the TC board.
It is expected that the board would advertise the post.
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TC Board Chairperson Godfrey Chapola confirmed the development.
“His [Chidanti Malunga’s] contract was extended by three months because there was no board and, as such, the government could not employ the chief executive officer. Instead, it extended the contract while waiting for the constitution of the board. For the purposes of transparency and accountability, we will advertise the position and anyone including him will be free to apply,” Chapola said.
When contacted Sunday, Chidanti Malunga could neither confirm nor deny the news, preferring to refer us to Chapola.
Meanwhile, transparency and accountability expert Willy Kambwandira has urged State presidents to be expediting the appointment of board members.
“This development confirms our earlier fears that any delay by the President to appoint board members has cost implications,” he said.
Human Right Defenders Coalition Chairperson Gift Trapence echoed Kambwandira’s concerns.
“Government delays in appointing board members affect operations of parastatals. There are certain oversight decisions that require boards to be in place,” Trapence said.
Chakwera has lately been accused of delaying the appointment of board members.
For instance, the Roads Authority operated for over a year without a board after the previous one was fired for alleged incompetence.
