Chairperson of the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Steve Malondera, says the committee has questioned the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) over approximately K500 million in expenditure incurred outside its approved budget.
Malondera made the remarks after the committee met MACRA officials, led by Director General Dr Mayamiko Mkoloma, to scrutinise issues raised in an audit report for the financial year ending March 2025.
According to Malondera, MACRA failed to provide satisfactory justification for the expenditure, which he said was contrary to proper financial management practices and not in the public interest.
He said the committee had directed MACRA to strengthen its financial management systems and obtain the necessary approvals before incurring expenditure outside its approved budget.
“You can’t be spending when you’re thinking that we will legalise this during a board meeting. Ideally, you’re supposed to raise an issue way before that overspending occurs,” said Malondera.
The committee also questioned MACRA over payments made to a supplier before the authority had verified the goods or services supplied.
Malondera said MACRA disclosed that one of its stores officers had allegedly connived with the supplier, resulting in some documents or items not being properly accounted for.
He said although the matter had been reported to the police and the supplier was no longer doing business with MACRA, the committee questioned whether those measures were sufficient.
The PAC further questioned why MACRA had not reported the supplier to the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets Authority (PPDA), arguing that failure to do so could expose other public institutions to the same supplier.
Malondera said the committee had asked MACRA to bring the supplier before it for further scrutiny and possible action.
Meanwhile, MACRA raised concerns over outstanding receivables owed to the authority by various institutions, including mobile telecommunications companies, courier service providers and media organisations.
Dr Mkoloma said the outstanding debts were affecting some of MACRA’s operations.
However, Malondera said the committee had noted progress in MACRA’s efforts to recover the outstanding funds.
He said MACRA had reported collecting significant amounts from major institutions and remitting about K16 billion out of approximately K18 billion in dividends during the period under review.
Malondera also cited TNM as an example of improved remittances, saying the telecommunications company had recently paid approximately K1.2 billion.
The PAC chairperson said the committee would continue monitoring MACRA to ensure that issues identified during the audit scrutiny are addressed and that public resources are managed in accordance with established financial regulations.
