Blantyre, Malawi – The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has stated it is not investigating the controversial passport printing contract awarded to Indian firm Madras Security Printers, citing a lack of any formal complaint.
The bureau’s clarification comes in response to inquiries from The Investigator Magazine regarding alleged ties between Madras Security and a Malawian company, World Wide Construction, in securing the lucrative deal. World Wide Construction is not under probe nor the contract, says the ACB.
“The Bureau’s complaints records do not contain the said complaint,” Principal Public Relations Officer Egrata Ndala confirmed in an email.
However, sources within the ACB suggest the bureau is instead examining allegations of attempted blackmail and solicitation of bribes by individuals connected to the contract.
The awarding of the contract to Madras Security has been fraught with controversy. The company’s reputation has been questioned following issues with its operations in Kenya. In Malawi, the contract was temporarily withheld due to infighting among senior government officials. It is alleged that recent media disputes are driven by individuals who feel excluded from the deal and are now vying for a share of the profits.
The Investigator Magazine has identified several senior government officials aligned with various bidders. Many of these bidders, including some Malawian companies, were disqualified at different stages for reasons including a perceived lack of political compliance.
The passport situation in Malawi has been dire. A temporary six-month contract awarded to a local company, E-Tech, was marred by the production of poor-quality passports. The issue was so significant that even First Lady Monica Chakwera experienced problems with her passport while travelling to Geneva for official meetings. The poor quality has led to numerous Malawians being detained in foreign countries or denied boarding on flights, resulting in lawsuits against the government exceeding K800 million. The United States had previously threatened a travel ban on Malawian citizens if the passport quality was not urgently addressed.
According to a November 2024 report by The Investigator Magazine, six companies submitted bids for the contract. Notably, the list of invited bidders included Semlex, a Belgian firm with a history of fraud and money laundering allegations. While E-Tech passed the technical evaluation, it was ultimately not shortlisted.
Reports suggest a senior government official, allegedly under pressure from “higher-ups,” is working to have the current contract with Madras Security cancelled in favour of reinstating E-Tech.
Another Malawian-owned firm, Sparc Systems, which has a strong reputation in banking technology, has historically struggled to secure large public service contracts. The company was reportedly not considered for the passport contract due to political reasons, mirroring previous experiences with Reserve Bank of Malawi tenders where numerous excuses were allegedly made to prevent awarding them contracts.
Other bidders included Electronics Hub, a company with a Malawian national as its contact, about which little is known. International bidders featured Nitel, whose bid was submitted by an individual named Ivor Otomani, and Madras Security Printers.
The bid from the Belgian firm, Semlex Group, listed a contact with both local and Belgian phone numbers. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Semlex’s operations have been linked to officials in the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) and State House. The DRC government eventually cancelled its 2015 contract with Semlex and launched an investigation into the firm, which was charging US$185 for a passport—making it one of the most expensive in the world—while the government received only US$65.
A Reuters investigation revealed that Semlex allegedly used offshore companies to pay government officials. The 2017 report detailed a corrupt arrangement in the DRC where a relative of then-President Joseph Kabila was named as a beneficiary through a Dubai-registered firm, prompting an investigation by Belgian authorities. Observers have noted that such patterns of using questionable companies to siphon public funds bear similarities to other procurement scandals that have occurred under the current administration.
