By Vincent Gunde
Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs Simplex Chithyola Banda, says with immediate effect, the Fiscal Police with support from the Financial Intelligence Agency (FIA) and National Intelligence Service (NIS) including Malawi Defense Force (MDF) will intensify crackdown on all illegal foreign exchange traders in all markets across the country and in border areas.
According to Chithyola Banda, Government has noted with a great concern that overvalued Kwacha was promoting the growth of a criminal and illegal black market undermining banks with people even buying foreign exchange from banks cheaply and later on selling the same forex at high premiums on the black market.
The Minister says as a result, the risk of collusion between the black market and some corrupt bankers was great, saying government cannot allow its banks to be raided by criminals or allowing the situation to continue where legitimate business could only access forex by buying it from criminals.
In a statement signed by dated November 13, 2023,the Minister has however, warned the public to resist and report all suspicious incidents of buying or selling of foreign exchange from unregistered vendors.
He says any individual or entity caught engaging in this business without proper registration and authorization will be arrested, prosecuted, and have their foreign exchange impounded according to law reminding the general public that dealing in foreign exchange without authorization or license from the Reserve Bank of Malawi is illegal under the Exchange Control Act 1984.
“All authorized and licensed Foreign Exchange Dealers are reminded to always display evidence of authorization or license at a conspicuous place within their business premises,” says Chithyola Banda in a statement.
Reacting to the Minister’s statement, two Malawi First leaders who are activists Comrade Sir Charles Ben Longwe and Comrade Redson Munlo, have accused government of trying to paint a bad picture at Forex dealers on the black market as the ones draining forex in Malawi.
Ben Longwe and Munlo have reminded the MCP led government that before them entering into government, forex dealers on the black market have been there even during Ngwazi Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda but not even a single day the previous governments launched a crackdown on them.
They have however, argued that the country is sailing through no forex crisis because President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera is used to take with him forex wherever he is flying with his bloated entourages and not forex dealers on the black market.
“Tambala in old-town, Lilongwe and Gerald at the Game Stores in Lilongwe have been in ferex exchange business for years watching government coming in and go, they are still in this business till today,” said Longwe.
Ben Longwe and Redson Munlo say as leaders of Malawi First, they have found Chithyola Banda’s statement useless with nothing to change for Malawi but destruction of the country claiming that this is speaking for itself that President Chakwera has failed to run Malawi on servant leadership.
