First Vice-President Jane Ansah’s office yesterday could not answer whether she self-funded her private trip to the United Kingdom (UK) after President Peter Mutharika announced on Wednesday that his number two assured him of using private resources. Instead, spokesperson in the Office of the First Vice-President Richard Mveriwa said Minister of Information and Communications Technology Shadric Namalomba was better placed to state whose money Ansah used to travel to Nottingham “since he is the one who issued a statement on travel budget.” Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Decentralisation Joseph Mwanamvekha as well as Secretary to the Treasury Cliff Chiunda were not immediately available for comment yesterday. Chief Secretary to OPC Justin Saidi yesterday told The Nation to check with State House because “I did not issue any statement”.
But on Wednesday night, State House press secretary Cathy Maulidi referred us to President Mutharika’s statement. In the said statement, Mutharika said when he learnt that Ansah planned to use public funds on her private trip to the UK; the First Vice President assured him that she would use private resources. He said: “I wish to report that the Vice-President assured me that she would use her private resources on her trip.
But experts yesterday said the shifting narratives by government on funding for Ansah’s private trip exposes a “grave failure of honesty and coherence in State communication”. Reacting to the development, law professor Garton Kamchedzera from the University of Malawi said one of these two offices or both—State House and Ministry of Information and Communications Technology—has or have lied to the public. “Malawi’s Constitution expects personal integrity, in Section 13(o).
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The reasons for deciding or being careless to lie underline lack of honest government, or at least honest communication,” he said. Section 13 (o) of the Constitution calls on the State to ” introduce measures which will guarantee accountability, transparency, personal integrity and financial probity and which by virtue of their effectiveness and visibility will strengthen confidence in public institutions.” “The public functionaries that have lied to the public must be held responsible and someone or some people must resign. It is essential to do so, to sustain trust in the public, which is essential for good governance,” he urged.
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