Attorney General Frank Mbeta has asked the High Court of Malawi to set aside a stay order that reinstated Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) chief executive officer (CEO) Kamkwamba Kumwenda. In his submissions before the court, Mbeta argues that Kumwenda failed to disclose material facts and has alternative remedies; hence, the court order is inappropriate. The Attorney General has also argued that Kumwenda suppressed a demand for a K1.114 billion payout and, therefore, misled the court.
According to the State, Kumwenda through his lawyers, Ritz Attorneys-At-Law, sought K1 114 349 130 as compensation for what he described as constructive dismissal. Against this particular demand, Mbeta argues that Kumwenda’s own letter shows that had he been paid the sum, he would not have pursued the court action, which indicates an alternative remedy is already being pursued. Besides, the Attorney General contends that because the claim is essentially a labour dispute, Kumwenda should have taken the matter to the Industrial Relations Court (IRC), and not sought relief by way of judicial review.
On December 24 2025, High Court of Malawi Judge Allan Hans Muhome granted Kumwenda permission to apply for judicial review and issued a stay, restraining Chief Secretary Justin Saidi from seconding him to Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (Mubas) as lecturer. The order directed that Kumwenda be treated as if the secondment, dated November 4 2025, had not been made and further instructed that the judicial review be expedited. The court ordered Kumwenda to file the substantive judicial review application and skeleton arguments within 14 days.
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It read: “Orders that permission be and is hereby granted to the claimant to apply for the review of the defendant’s decision seconding the claimant to the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences as a lecturer; “Orders that the defendant’s decision made on November 4 2025 be, and is hereby stayed with the result that until the hearing and determination of the application for judicial review or until a further order of the court”. Kumwenda is among several corporate executives seconded to public universities after the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) assumed power in September 2025. Other corporate executives seconded to Mubas include CEOs for Central Region Water Board, Blantyre Water Board and Southern Region Water Board (SRWB); John Makwenda, Robert Hanjahanja and Duncan Chambamba, respectively. Northern Region Water Board and Electricity Generation Company CEOs; Francis Munthali and Maxon Chitawo as well as Escom’s chief operations officer Maxwell Mulimakwenda were seconded to Mzuzu University as lecturers.
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