…claims being fought by “corrupt people”
…serious witch-hunting at MERA
The how-to-get-rich motivational speaker who went for a permanent job with state-owned Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (MERA) Henry Kachaje has had his first dosage of public service politics, with anonymous employees accusing him of claiming allowances for work not done.
The Investigator Magazine has been validating claims in a document issued by anonymous employees on 3rdAugust 2023 and has been informed by reliable sources that an Auditor from Capital Hill made the startling revelations.
“The Audit report found out that the Director of Finance and his counterpart were allocating themselves three field allowances for one field trip. The audit investigations found out that other Directors and the CEO were in the categories of making multiple field allowances as compared to a few field trips,” said the letter sent to the National Audit Office, signed by the Workers Union.
The official Workers Union representatives quickly disassociated themselves from the letter, promising to give an interview to The Investigator Magazine, but later changed only to say, “That’s the official letter and position.”
The report asking for a quick Government audit, claims that the top management at the energy regulator was colliding to defraud the institution, and an urgent audit is required to ensure that public money is not lost.
The staff also claim that an external auditor Baker Tilly uncovered an overpayment of K8 million to a technology company that transferred the MERAs digital systems from their old premises to their new offices.
“The overpayment was unnoticed by MERA internal controls because it connived between the Procurement and Finance team,” alleges the two-page letter.
Four people we spoke to anonymously claimed there is serious witch-hunting, anyone suspected to have authored that first letter they are being suspended, and there are strange transfers.
“Everyone suspected to have had anything to do with the letter they are being shifted or suspended,” said our sources. Kachaje allies at MERA claim a senior procurement officer and another from human resources were suspended for other reasons.
MERA Staff Union executive committee allegedly under pressure from Kachaje signed a counter letter to the Auditor General, disowning the allegations and the letter saying it was not from the Union.
“As MERA staff union we would like to distance ourselves from these accusations and refute the allegations in totality and we would like to warn the perpetrators to avoid and desist from dragging the Union’s name into personal agendas aimed at achieving personal motives,” reads the letter signed by President MacJessie Muula and six other members.
