After a seven-month standoff, Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) has re-summoned its ‘deputy governor’ Henry Mathanga to a disciplinary hearing over alleged involvement in fraudulent transactions, Nation on Sunday has established.

However, Mathanga has hit back describing the hearing as “irregular” and “meant to rubber-stamp premeditated evil decisions.”

Mathanga: Hearing is irregular

Initially, the central bank summoned Mathanga for the hearing last year but he obtained an injunction. He has persistently argued that he resigned from his position in 2021, citing breach of contract after RBM trimmed his salary and withheld some of his benefits.

Mathanga, therefore, argues that he cannot be subjected to such a hearing, citing Section 11(1) of the RBM Act from which the disciplinary committee draws its authority as for serving officers.

“I am not a serving member of the RBM since I resigned as Deputy Governor in 2021.”

The newly arranged hearing to be presided over by High Court judge Kenyatta Nyirenda-led committee is scheduled for this Wednesday in Lilongwe.

In a response to a questionnaire, Mathanga described the disciplinary committee as a “kangaroo court sort of arrangement meant to rubber stamp premeditated evil decisions on my fate as an employee of the RBM.”

Asked about his availability during the hearing, he responded: “By attending the disciplinary hearing one may be aiding and abetting or giving credence to a nefarious scheme. I am yet to decide whether to attend the hearing or not.”

The disciplinary hearing comes after the Industrial Relations Court, at the request of RBM, ruled that an injunction which Mathanga obtained stopping the previous hearing, had expired.

However, Mathanga shared reservations over the ruling arguing “the current sitting of the disciplinary committee will be irregular because the lifting of the injunction was itself irregular, having been made under suspicious circumstances by a judicial officer different from the one who put the injunction in the first place.”

In 2021, President Lazarus Chakwera appointed the disciplinary committee to determine whether there are reasons to fire Mathanga from his “position” over alleged fraudulent transactions.

RBM has charged Mathanga with three counts of breach of general powers and functions of the bank and failure to comply with the Code of Conduct. They all emanate from alleged irregular issuance of letters of credit valued at K13 billion to four companies.

The companies were contracted by the government to supply fertilisers for the Farm Input Subsidy Programme (Fisp).

Reads the RBM letter that summoned Mathanga to the failed hearing: “Between January 2018 and June 2020, Mr. Mathanga intentionally acted in breach of the general powers and functions of RBM as set out at Section 26 of the RBM Act by facilitating at approving letters of credit valued at K13, 659, 499, 037 to private entities.”

The central bank said the approval of the letters of credit put it at risk of a loss.

Attorney General Thabo Chakaka-Nyirenda, who represents the Office of the President and Cabinet which is in charge of the RBM deputy governor appointment, on Friday referred this paper to the central bank when asked to confirm Wednesday’s hearing and overall reaction to the saga.

RBM publicist Ralph Tseka had not responded to our questionnaire as we went to press.

Mathanga joined RBM 39 years ago and held a couple of positions before his appointment as deputy governor in 2020. He signed a five-year contract. After Tonse Alliance rose to power he was sent on forced leave before being suspended.

households, but also the Affordable Inputs Programme (AIP). targeting 380 000 ultra-poor

He said: “This is why in this coming fiscal year, all social protection programmes will be under one Consolidated Safety Nets Programme that will enhance synergies by making sure that the three main safety nets, namely the SCTP, CSEPWP and AIP, are each more uniquely targeted, all of which will protect no less than 4 million of the poorest and most vulnerable Malawians against the worst effects of our economic winter.

“But if this Consolidated Safety Nets Programme is going to be sustainable and if we are going to graduate people from it, we have to boost productivity in the wider economy and generate the revenue necessary to do so.”

In 2020, over 2.6 million people in 581 775 households were determined to be food insecure, and despite implementing the AIP in 2021, over 1.6 million people in 367 395 households were still determined to be food insecure. Government is currently supporting over 3.8 million Malawians in 847 421 households in all three regions of the country with food items or cash to buy food.

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