The US denounces the “intimidation campaign” against the head of Malawi’s anti-corruption body

9 Feb. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The United States has expressed “deep concern” over its “intimidation campaign” against the head of the country’s anti-corruption agency, Martha Chizuma, after a court overturned a suspension from her duties ordered by the authorities.

The Embassy of the United States in Malawi has highlighted in a statement that the actions of the Government of Malawi “have seriously damaged the credibility of its fight against corruption” and has criticized that the Prosecutor’s Office has appealed the ruling on the restitution of Chizuma, also rejected. .

“These measures by senior officials come after the director general (of the Anti-Corruption Office) was arrested in December in the middle of the night during an armed police raid.” “Since then, none of those responsible for carrying out or authorizing the arrest have been held accountable,” she lamented.

Thus, he stressed that after the arrest of Chizuma, later released, “the Government created an investigation commission that not only generated an unbalanced report, but also did not address the violation of the Director General’s Human Rights.” “Then the state filed charges against her,” he added.

“As a democratic partner, the US Embassy expects the Malawian government to maintain an active fight against corruption, not launch a campaign of intimidation against anti-corruption bosses,” he said.

In this sense, he has indicated that Washington has maintained contacts with the authorities of the African country to “renew the commitment to the fight against corruption”, although he has regretted that “these efforts have not yielded results”.

“Our commitment to Malawi’s development depends on trusting Malawi to use its public resources, including development funds, in a transparent, fair and accountable manner. These recent actions undermine the credibility of the Government of Malawi’s stated commitment to the fight against corruption”, he stressed.

The government’s decision to suspend Chizuma came amid controversy over audio leaks in January 2022 of his statements on various cases, in which he claimed that various officials, including now former Attorney General Steven William Kayuni, they were hurting anti-corruption efforts.

Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera has publicly defended Chizuma against the accusations against her and in January confirmed her in office despite the content of the recordings, adding that “Chizuma has a constitutional right to file a lawsuit against the person who recorded their statements against their will.

Chakwera prevailed in the 2020 elections, which were held after the 2019 presidential elections – in which former President Peter Mutharika won re-election – were annulled by the courts due to irregularities. After that, he promised to fight corruption in the country and asked the judiciary “to do more to end the culture of corruption and selective justice.”