The office of Vice-President Jane Ansah has failed to confirm whether her private trip to the United Kingdom (UK) is self-funded as claimed by President Peter Mutharika.
On Wednesday, Mutharika issued a statement saying that Ansah assured him that she is using private resources for the trip.
“I wish to report that the Vice-President assured me that she would use her private resources on her trip.
“I would like to assure all Malawians that my administration remains firmly committed to exercising the highest level of prudence and accountability in the management of public resources,” he said
However, spokesperson in the Office of the First Vice-President Richard Mveriwa told The Nation that Minister of Information and Communications Technology Shadric Namalomba was better placed to state whose money Ansah used to travel to Nottingham “since he is the one who issued a statement on travel budget.”
When the paper contacted Namalomba, he just said “let me verify with Treasury and OPC [Office of the President and Cabinet] and will revert”.
Before Mutharika’s statement, Namalomba said Ansah would take five officials at a cost of K168 million and not the K1.9 billion for 15 people that went viral on social media.
When The Nation contacted Chief Secretary to OPC Justin Saidi, they were told to check with State House because “I did not issue any statement”.
Private practice lawyer and governance pundit Benedicto Kondowe told the paper that the current matter does not imply a slip or miscommunication, but reflects either disorder or deception at the highest levels of government.
“Government must immediately release documentary evidence such as travel invoices, payment receipts and funding confirmations, proving that no public funds were used,” he said.
