Why Kawale, Gwenge and Zamba Were Arrested: Inside the Fertiliser and Tobacco Scandal

Three senior former government officials – former Secretary to the President and Cabinet (SPC) Colleen Zamba, former Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale, and former Minister of Finance Sosten Gwengwe – have been arrested as part of a major corruption investigation involving billions of kwacha in public funds. The arrests follow a joint investigation by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and the Fiscal Police Department, focusing on alleged fraud and abuse of office linked to fertiliser and tobacco deals. At the centre of the case is a shocking deal in which a UK-based butchery was awarded a K750 million contract to supply fertiliser to Malawi.

Investigators say the fertiliser was never delivered, yet government money was still paid. Sources close to the investigation say the money was later traced to activities on the tobacco auction floors, suggesting that public funds meant for fertiliser may have been used to buy tobacco instead. In simple terms, government paid for fertiliser, the fertiliser never came, and the money was allegedly used elsewhere.

The second major focus of the investigation is East Bridge, a controversial Romanian company. According to investigators, East Bridge was given billions of kwacha by the Malawi government to buy tobacco from farmers. However, the money was allegedly treated as if it were East Bridge’s own funds, not government money.

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Even more troubling, farmers were reportedly asked to give up soya and tobacco in exchange for fertiliser that was never delivered. One source told investigators: “East Bridge got billions from government to buy tobacco as if it was their own money. They also took crops from farmers in exchange for fertiliser, but no fertiliser was ever delivered.” The arrested officials are believed to have played key roles in approving or overseeing these deals.

Sam Kawale, as Minister of Agriculture, was responsible for fertiliser and farming policies. Sosten Gwengwe, as Minister of Finance, oversaw government spending. Colleen Zamba, as SPC, was the most powerful civil servant, coordinating Cabinet decisions.

Investigators are now trying to establish who authorised the payments, who benefited, and whether laws were broken in awarding the contracts. East Bridge and Nyasa Tobacco were also allowed to buy tobacco using Malawi Kwacha, not foreign currency. This was highly unusual because tobacco is Malawi’s main source of foreign exchange, and is normally sold in dollars.

Kawale defended the decision, saying it was part of a government-to-government deal with China. But critics say this arrangement weakened Malawi’s forex reserves and opened doors for abuse.

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