Two people have been slapped with 36 months jail sentence by the Nsanje Magistrate Court for allegedly embezzling funds meant for the construction of a canal from the Shire River to Tikondane Irrigation Scheme.
Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Senior Public Relations Officer Egrita Ndala confirmed the development and identified the two as Village Headman Alufandika and The Chairman of the Village Development Committee Mr. Rashid Mamani.
According to Ndala, on 23rd November, 2015, the Anti-Corruption Bureau received a complaint alleging that thirty people only were working on an LDF funded project which was supposed to be carried out by one hundred while the other seventy were ghost workers.
“The Anti- Corruption Bureau instituted investigations and established that Village Headman Alufandika and The Chairman of the Village Development Committee Mr. Rashid Mamani connived to include the ghost workers on the list of villagers to work on a project to construct a canal from the Shire River to Tikondane Irrigation Scheme.
“On 26th January, 2017, the Anti-Corruption Bureau arrested Mr. Useni Pensulo (Village Headman Alufandika) and Mr. Rashid Mamani,” said Ndala.
She added: “They were taken to court on 27th January, 2016 where they were charged withuttering a false document, theft and misuse of office.”
On 20th March, 2018, Nsanje Magistrate’s Court convicted the two on all the three counts. They were sentenced to thirty six months imprisonment for misuse of public office, 18 months for uttering a false documents and twelve months for theft. The sentences are expected to run concurrently.
