Malawi Law Society is launching an investigation into legal processes around Romanian company, East Bridge fertilizer deal with the Malawi government has left tongues wagging.
Malawi Law Society officials say this is because the public has generated interest in the commodity exchange deal.
MLS President Patrick Gray Mpaka
MLS officials say they intends to establish, for example, why procurement laws and regulations were allegedly not followed, especially as the Anti-Corruption Bureau appears to hold a different view on how PPDA should have handled a request from the ministry of agriculture for guidance on the transaction with East Bridge of Romania.
While ACB expected PPDA to invoke section 31 of the PPDA Act in the said request, PPDA responded that the transaction was not provided for in the public procurement framework.
The ACB also observed that the same ministry of agriculture wrote ACB demanding due diligence on the Romanian company when the ACB expected submission for vetting of procurement of the deal through PPDA as provided for under the PPDA Act in such matters.
ACB spokesperson Egritta Ndala says the Ministry of Agriculture wrote the Bureau asking for the due diligence on East Bridge in April this year.
Meanwhile, the Agriculture Committee of Parliament says it has summoned officials from the Ministry of Agriculture to inquire about this year’s Affordable Inputs Programme (AIP) fertilizer deals.
The committee’s chairperson Sameer Suleman said preparation’s for this year are not giving any sign of hope hence meeting the officials starting Monday next week.
Among issues to inquire include the East Bridge fertiliser deal and an impending contract with 15 companies to supply the commodity, according to Suleman.
Agriculture minister Sam Kawale said the ministry officials will attend the meeting to provide a detailed update on the preparations as requested by the committee.
This year’s AIP is worth K117 billion, out of which K110 billion is for fertiliser procurement.
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