Bingu wa Mutharika’s whims cost more than K1 billion in payouts

Malawi Government, through the reserve bank, paid K800 million to Victoria Forex Bureau as compensation for loss of business over the last three years of forced closure, lawyer Kalekeni Kaphale’s court filings show.

Bingu wa Mutharika had closed forex bureaus claiming they were the reason Malawi had forex shortages according to his brand of economics and his investigations.

Since the Joyce Banda administration took over in April this year, government has paid a number of out-of-court claims.

Another one of them is the K20 million out-of-court settlement for false imprisonment by five people arrested alongside Kasambara on February 13 2012. These people were arrested for allegedly assaulting three men that Kasambara claimed attempted to kill him.

This five were represented by Ralph and Arnolds Associates, a legal firm in which Kasambara is a former partner.

Another case involves former first deputy speaker Esther Chilenje who secured a K20 million payout from the National Assembly on July 17 2012 as compensation for suffering loss of motor vehicle use.

Currently, in the commercial division of the High Court in Blantyre on October 18 2012 on behalf of CLC Forex Bureau to oppose the Reserve Bank of Malawi’s move against striking his client’s lawsuit against the central bank to also compensate the company for loss of business damages estimated at K104.3 million.