…named as kingpin in vehicle, cement and forex deals
..President Chakwera’s cousin eliminating IG rivals
He is the DeFacto Inspector General of the Malawi Police Service but sounds like a criminal mastermind disguised as a Police officer and is now set to be formally endorsed as Inspector General by President Lazarus Chakwera, whom he claims to be his cousin.
Ackis Angello Muwanga, Commissioner of Police for operations is the most powerful Police officer now and he is running the Malawi Police Service as a personal kingdom, that you cross him- you will be finished in all sense.
From hot-wired car dealers, Malawians of Asian heritage, forex and border smugglers- Muwanga is the name to go to and you should not cross, says one Police officer in the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) who says junior officers now call him “satana wa ku 30.”
He is above the Inspector General Marlayne Yolamu, a figure head retiree whose extension of contract was engineered by Muwanga to see off two Deputies Late Casper Chalera (operations) and Happy Mkandawire (administration) who is on leave pending retirement.
Any rivals must be eliminated- literally that’s Muwanga’s move has been and has resulted in the Monday arrest of Richard Luhanga, Commissioner of Police for Northern Region a competent and widely seen as potential candidate for the post of Inspector General. There are fears among senior Police officers that he might be planning similar attacks on those he perceives as threat.
This is the first time Police have engineered arrest of their own as ACB deputy director Hilary Chilomba are said to have planned the arrest, despite ACB investigators stating there was not enough evidence to prosecute.
But arresting Luhanga on flimsy charges that were dismissed by ACB in 2022 that he had used Press Trust paint donation for his farm could be the mistake he has made- as officers are now free talking of his abuse of Police resources than any other officer since 1964 and junior Police officers have collected shocking evidence waiting for the day he will be appointed as Inspector General or fall down that even Parliament cannot confirm him.
Deals from forex, cement to hotwired cars
Ackis Muwanga is popular among car dealers- because he gives them access and clearance of stolen cars from South Africa and this has been done by putting his henchmen in the CID, Interpol and even at borders to facilitate the illegal car business.
One of the hot cars is said to be in his possession and he has openly had squabbles over stolen car shares that has led him to abuse Police to confiscate the vehicles.
“Every Police officer knows that satana wa ku 30 has shares in car business, the list of cars he has ordered to be cleared is available,” says one of the Police officers who found himself dressed down by Muwanga when he seized a reportedly stolen vehicle.
For cement- his mansion project at by-pass area in Lilongwe is financed by crooked businessmen who smuggle cement from Zambia. Muwanga is using Police lorries to ferry the cement, and it is an open secret.
“Smugglers at Nsundwe now cheer Police lorries because they bring smuggled goods including cement. They stone MRA vehicles. There was a shootout last year between MRA and MPS, this is well documented, but nothing was done because he was the one calling the shots,” alleged another senior Police officer adding several incidents had been recorded but told to be dropped by the Commissioner of Police.
Police officers were injured in the fracas and Muwanga sent a Land cruiser to protect his loot.
Muwanga is named alongside a dead former Head of CID to have been involved in fleecing funds from a Muslim Sheikh at Chitipi K10 million to avoid arrest over money laundering allegations.
“With a lady at Lumbadzi he is into foreign exchange business. Even most of those ladies arrested in RSA or on return with bank cards, the Police pretend they will prosecute them, nobody will because he is among the main players of illegal forex cartels,” says another Police officer.
Abuse of Police resources, demanding bribes from juniors
Muwanga claims he is related to President Chakwera a connection that has made him the most powerful officer in Malawi, but he now plays tribal card, abuse Police resources and is sure his “cousin” will do nothing about it.
The Police strongman is using Police fuel to run his tractors at his farms and uses public trucks to transport items for his projects and nobody can question him but obey his orders.
“Luhanga’s charges taking advantage looks like a joke if you see Muwanga, not only abusing Police fuel, vehicles but he has awarded himself a contract to supply the maize that he grows using public resource to Police training school. A poor lady called Monica was transferred from PTS because she delayed in paying him,” charged another senior officer who said if the morale in Police service is to be regained, President Chakwera needs to get rid of his “abusive cousin.”
In terms of finances- his biggest prize is the Police mission to Sudan as those who wish to go have to pay a “tithe” in dollars to the Commissioner or forget the life changing opportunity, another officer alleged.
“Amati ulipile ma dollar, safuna kwacha Satana wa ku 30. Komanso amalamula ndalama za community policing amatapa mmene wafunila, komanso amatha kulemba ngati akupita kunja kupochela allowance osapita kuli konse. Kuli zambiri, ma voucher wo sungani tizapeze poyambila September,” a leaked message among Police officer shared with The Investigator Magazine reveals the rot that is being orchestrated by Muwanga.
Other issues that have emerged includes a scandal where youth collecting money in the name of MCP SG Richard Chimwendo Banda in exchange for Police recruitment were arrested and they revealed Muwanga collectes 50% and they were released at Chitipi Police. The other is allowances for presidential operations which disappeared but they were being claimed. They have suddenly re appeared last two weeks.
Open tribalist, panga youth on his payroll
Commissioner Muwanga is said to have become so powerful politically as well that he has made sure people from Central Region dominate the force and become heads of all departments for easy operations.
“He has his own Police force- from Commissioners, Regions and even CID, Fiscal and all others. His qualification is simple- be a Chewa from Lilongwe or his bootlicker. He openly says akummwela anadyelela kale, aku mpoto alibe ntchito,” said an angry officer who sent a Voice Note.
Another Police officer alleged that some of the youth who hacked Concerned Civil Servants were Police officers who were issued with new panga knives Muwanga personally collected from a certain shop in Lilongwe a Friday before the demonstrations.
“He is getting rid of all competition, Luhanga is the first one, then he will go for Noel Kayira, then a lady from Eastern Region. Unfortunately, he is telling his cousin President Chakwera that he is putting his own people to deal with any elections related matters decisively,” said an MCP member who is a Commissioner of the Police Commission.
Editors view: President Chakwera is the godfather of tribalism and corruption
The news that the desperate Deputy Director of Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Hilary Chilomba has been terrorising staff at the anti-graft body and that recently went public to confirm that he was about to crack on main opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials did reach President Lazarus Chakwera. We would imagine he called his cousin Ackis Muwanga at the Police Service to learn from Chilomba, who is doing a good job.
Chilomba and Muwanga might have actually met at State House or at Chewa Heritage headquarters on how to deal with any sign of possible resistance to the new order that they want to establish.
The terror patterns are the same- arrest or chase off rivals, claim allowances, abuse public resources and tribalise the public institutions. President Chakwera gets the reports, knows what is happening, as usual he agrees with the two and gives them more powers.
Muwanga and Chilomba, just like all other corrupt officials know much about how corrupt President Lazarus Chakwera is, they know is their godfather in perpetuating tribalism and for the past five years they know they will get promotions for behaving the way they are behaving because that is what their boss likes. Thats what he sends them to do and defend.
Otherwise, if President Chakwera had a soul, he would have been acting to save Malawians from such rapid tribalists destroying every institution they found operating properly turning it into something like a tribal and personal cabal. The impunity of Muwanga traces back to his cousin- the godfather of corruption and tribal grandmaster.
