US embassy cable - 05LILONGWE131

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LILONGWE 000131 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/S ADRIENNE GALANEK 
STATE FOR EB/IFD/OMA FRANCES CHISHOLM 
STATE FOR EB/IFD/ODF LINDA SPECHT 
TREASURY FOR INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS/AFRICA/LUKAS KOHLER 
JOHANNESBURG FOR FCS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID, EINV, KCOR, PGOV, KMCA, MI, Political, President 
SUBJECT: MALAWI'S ANTI-CORRUPTION FIGHT RATCHETS UP 
 
REF: A. 2004 LILONGWE 1018 
     B. LILONGWE 117 
 
This message is sensitive but unclassified--not for Internt 
distribution. 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1. (U) Malawi's president used Malawi's Anti-Corruption Day 
on February 5 as a platform to reaffirm his stance against 
corruption and to use the issue as a political lever against 
the ruling party.  As he raises the profile of this issue 
still further, the main GOM agency responsible for 
prosecuting and preventing corruption is hampered by lack of 
funds.  This presents a potential new liability for 
Mutharika, as failure to produce tangible results, mainly in 
the form of convictions, would cost him significant political 
credibility.  End summary. 
 
 
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POUNDING THE PODIUM AGAIN, THIS TIME WITH FEELING 
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2. (U) At the ceremonies marking Malawi's Anti-Corruption Day 
on February 5, President Bingu wa Mutharika reaffirmed his 
government's commitment to controlling corruption.  By 
itself, his presence at the event would have had that effect, 
but he also delivered a speech characterizing the fight 
against corruption as "the centerpiece of our Government's 
management policy."  Promising "not (to) relent until those 
who plundered our economy with impunity have been brought to 
book," Mutharika bemoaned both Malawi's reputation as "one of 
the most corrupt countries in Africa" and the cost of 
corruption in terms of international development assistance. 
 
3. (U) Casting corruption as a phenomenon of the past ten 
years, Mutharika took another step toward identifying it with 
the administration of former president Bakili Muluzi.  He 
went so far as to describe the "disgust" of Malawians "that a 
person can acquire more than forty houses...within a short 
period of ten years," a clear reference to Muluzi.  As 
previously reported (ref B), Mutharika resigned from Muluzi's 
United Democratic Front party at the end of his speech, on 
the grounds that he can no longer associate himself with such 
a corrupt political cohort. 
 
 
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MULUZI'S HEAD?  PERHAPS NOT YET 
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4. (SBU) In the week after this dramatic move, speculation is 
running high that Muluzi will be arrested soon, driven in 
part by Mutharika's mention of the "individual" with forty 
houses.  Sources within the GOM have indicated that Muluzi 
has been under some level of investigation since at least 
September.  However, in our frequent encounters with senior 
GOM officials with a stake in the issue, there is a marked 
absence of bloodlust toward the former president.  While the 
sense of outrage does have a political dimension, it seems to 
be directed more toward the corrupt practices themselves than 
at Muluzi.  This may be a question of proximity: as Muluzi's 
power continues to fade, his personal culpability, and the 
possibility of his prosecution, may enter more into the 
public discourse.  (NOTE: A couple of recent developments 
point to action against Muluzi sooner rather than later.  The 
former president's guard supervisors were changed two days 
ago, causing a political flap, and GOM contacts have said 
that the case against Muluzi is ready to go, and arrest is 
imminent.  However, this is not the first time we have heard 
that arrest is imminent.  End note.) 
 
 
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CAPABLE HANDS, BUT FEW TOOLS TO WORK WITH 
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5. (U) In any event, the pressure is now on the ACB to 
deliver, and its first priority is convictions for high-level 
corruption.  While the ACB's relatively new director appears 
to be doing his best to get good cases to court, it is 
doubtful that he has adequate resources to do so.  In his 
speech at the Anti-Corruption Day observances, Kaliwo pleaded 
with the President to give him more and better tools.  These 
included legal changes such as powers of search and arrest, 
but also mundane needs such as better salaries, money for a 
hotline, vehicles for investigators, and a roof that does not 
leak. 
6. (SBU) NOTE: In a meeting on February 8 to discuss 
administration of an impending $200,000 ESF grant, Kaliwo 
said he has only one full-time prosecutor and a staff of 
well-educated but untrained investigators.  The UK is 
providing funds for the ACB to contract some prosecutors from 
private practice, but his organization is clearly struggling 
to keep up, even with the relatively tight focus Kaliwo has 
brought to the organization (ref A).  End Note. 
 
7. (U) As of now, the ACB has delivered only one conviction 
during Mutharika's time, on a case that was brought by the 
last administration.  The Bureau's highest-profile case, that 
of former finance minister Friday Jumbe (ref A), is stalled, 
and the ACB is just now getting some (donor-funded) outside 
help.  Several other cases are making their way toward trial 
dates, but it is unclear whether the ACB can assure the 
high-profile convictions they need. 
 
 
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COMMENT 
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8. (SBU) Mutharika continues to raise the stakes on 
delivering some tangible results in his anti-corruption 
drive.  With his resignation from the UDF, he has managed to 
elevate the problem to the political level. In essence, he is 
building a public enemy of the Muluzi coterie's entrenched 
interests.  This is proving to be politically useful, as it 
forces his UDF compatriots to choose sides, and casts the 
choice as a moral one. 
 
9. (SBU) To keep his credibility on this issue, though, 
Mutharika must show that he can punish the most egregious 
cases.  Few doubt his sincerity at this point, but sincerity 
is not enough to solve the problem.  As his ACB director 
reminded him very publicly, he needs to commit more resources 
to prosecuting past cases and preventing future ones.  Now 
that the stakes are higher, the success of a few good cases 
would likely buy the GOM some time and credibility.  The 
failure of those same cases could be a significant political 
failure, erasing the moral advantage that Mutharika now 
enjoys, mostly on credit. 
 
 
GILMOUR