The Office of the Ombudsman and the Malawi School of Government (MSG) have joined the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in the fight against graft in the country.

Speaking during the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Lilongwe yesterday, ACB director general Martha Chizuma warned that they will no longer massage corruption in the country as the anti-corruption interventions will be research-based following its collaboration with the MSG, formerly Malawi Institute of Management and Staff Development Institute.

L-R: Malera, Chizuma and Chiweza put pen to paper on the MoU

The tripartite MoU seeks to improve ethical governance and integrity in the public and private sectors.

Chizuma said: “We are no longer massaging corruption, because what we’re telling the fraudsters and these people who are always involved in corrupt acts is that we’re going to be smarter than them. They are very smart, but we’re going to be smarter than them because our interventions on whatever they’re doing will be based on research.”

She highlighted that from the partnership, the ACB will benefit from research-based interventions which she said will make substantive in-roads in the fight against corruption, recognising that the bureau sometimes gets pulled all over by people who are trying to set the agenda or help; some of whom have evil agendas to frustrate the fight against corruption.

Ombudsman Grace Malera said the trio has joined hands to ensure that there is collaborative effort in capacity building of the public sector, as well as to entrench ethics in the fight against corruption.

“There is a critical linkage between maladministration, which sometimes takes the form of unethical conduct, lack of integrity, and corruption. Actually, by the time a corrupt practice happens it means somebody already acted in an unethical manner or did not follow some procedures or laws. That is where the Office of the Ombudsman comes in,” she said.

In an interview, MSG director general Professor Asiyati Chiweza said MSG is bringing in the training, research and the advisory services.

She said: “as Malawi School of Government, our mandate is training, research, consultancy and advisory services in the public and the private sector. And one of the key areas we are supposed to talk about are issues of integrity, honesty and accountability.”

Taking her turn, former secretary to the President and Cabinet Hawa Ndilowe, who was the guest of honour, acknowledged the significance of improving ethical governance and integrity in the public and private sectors through the partnership.

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