By Linda Kwanjana
A whistleblower has reported businessman Azhar Mahmood Chaudhry to the Malawi Police Service’s Fiscal Section, alleging that diverted materials meant for the Ministry of Energy were stored at a warehouse in Blantyre.
In a statement dated June 8, 2026, the whistleblower, his name withheld for security reasons, disclosed that he was approached by Chaudhry around June 2025 seeking space to keep aluminium twin wire and stay wire at his warehouse. He agreed, and on June 2, 2025, 18 drums were delivered by Siku Transport.
The whistleblower submitted Siku Transport delivery note to the Fiscal Police and a National Bank of Malawi deposit slip of K1,631,000 paid by Chaudhry’s firm, Mas International, for transport to Siku, as evidence.
The whistleblower said in his statement that he discovered later that the goods belonged to the Malawi Rural Electrification Project (MAREP) under contract number 049‑IPDC‑MOE‑MAREP‑G‑NCB‑2021/22FY‑01 between Kumakoka Trading and the Ministry of Energy.
“The documents I saw showed that the goods were actually imported by Kumakoka Trading and were supposed to be delivered to Ministry of Energy under the above mentioned contract…I am not sure of the business relationship between Mr. Azhar Mahmood Chaudhry and Kumakoka Trading,” explained the whistleblower.
The owner of the warehouse told Fiscal Police that he had information that Kumakoka Trading had received advance payment from the Ministry but failed to fully perform the contract, suspecting the goods in his warehouse are tied to that breach.
The warehouse owner further assured the Police that he was ready to deliver the materials to the Ministry.
The Ministry of Energy is already pursuing Kumakoka Trading, Africa Green Economy, and Loui Holdings Group (PTV) Limited for allegedly pocketing nearly K1.4 billion in upfront payments under Marep Phase 9 without fulfilling obligations.
Information gathered through court documents and interviews reveals Africa Green Economy Limited received K698,050,991.00, while Kumakoka Trading Company pocketed K523,538,243.57.
For Loui Holdings Group, court documents show the firm is in material breach of the same contract, with an outstanding advance of K144,674,756.91 for undelivered cables.
The Attorney General’s Chambers has since commenced legal action to recover the funds from the three firms, together with interest, damages and other costs arising from the alleged breaches.
Chaudhry is a known businessman embroiled in several criminal scandals. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs few years back revealed that he never held diplomatic status despite posing for years as a consular representative of Pakistan in Blantyre.
In a 2022 letter to Ritz Attorneys-at-Law, then Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Joel Immanuel Matonga, clarified that the ministry only issued Chaudhry an identity card to facilitate processes toward establishing an honorary consulate. The ministry stressed that the card did not confer any diplomatic or consular privileges under Malawi law.
Yet Chaudhry had erected a signpost at his Sunnyside residence in Blantyre declaring it the “Pakistan Consulate” and drove vehicles bearing CD (Corps Diplomatique) plates, symbols reserved for accredited diplomats. He later removed the signpost and normalised his vehicle registration after the ministry’s clarification, but analysts say he had already fraudulently enjoyed diplomatic privileges.
Chaudhry, originally from Pakistan and reported to have obtained a Malawi citizenship, declined to comment on the accusations.
The clarification by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs came when Chaudhry, during a court case, claimed he was a diplomat entitled to privileges and immunities. In response, lawyers wrote to the Ministry seeking confirmation of his diplomatic status, which prompted the ministry to issue its formal statement.
A political scientist at the University of Malawi, who opted for anonymity, described Chaudhry’s conduct as “a spat in the face of Malawi” and warned that such deception should not be allowed to go unpunished.
Governance analyst Thomas Cham’dimba echoed the concern, stressing that falsely claiming diplomatic status amounts to impersonation, fraud, and offences against the state under Malawi’s Penal Code.
International security expert Haswell Sikusa stressed the importance of addressing lapses decisively for national security. He urged the Ministry of Homeland Security to investigate the matter and, if wrongdoing is confirmed, revoke the individual’s citizenship and deport him. He said his application for citizenship should also be probed.
Chaudhry’s controversies extend beyond false diplomatic claims. He has faced criminal investigations into tax evasion, money laundering, corruption, and forex externalisation, alongside land disputes such as the Kanengo Northgate land grab.
Most recently, he was embroiled in Zoa Tea Estates Limited vs Mahmood Chaudhry Azhar (MSCA Misc Civil Application No. 04 of 2026) before the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal.
