By Edwin Mauluka

The Parliamentary Cluster Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises and Public Appointments has called for greater prioritisation of disaster response resources over the purchase of vehicles for cabinet ministers and principal secretaries (PSs).

The concerns were raised during a budget consultation meeting with officials from the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) on allocations in the 2026/2027 national budget presented by the Minister of Finance last week.

OPC Principal Secretary for Administration Rashid Mtelera told the committee that the MWK41.2 billion allocated to the OPC in the 2026/27 budget will not be sufficient to cover operations. He said the office requires an additional MWK11.1 billion to effectively implement reforms and respond to disasters.

Mtelera said procurement of vehicles for ministers and PSs is among the key priorities, with the OPC projecting to spend about MWK2 billion on the purchases.

“The fleet which has been inherited is small. Vehicles that are roadworthy for ministers are very few. That is why we had to take some vehicles from Foreign Affairs and some from State House so that ministers can remain mobile,” he explained.

He added that the government has not procured vehicles for PSs for several years, leaving many of them using cars that are more than five years old.

Mtelera also noted that some principal secretaries who joined the civil service on contract in recent years were allowed to purchase the vehicles they used upon leaving office, further reducing the fleet available for official duties.

However, Nsanje Central MP Francis Kasaila said the government should prioritise equipping the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA), noting that lack of transport is hindering relief operations in some areas.

“I was looking at what is being provided under disaster response. We are not prioritising the equipment needed when disasters occur. It is forcing people like myself in Nsanje to pay for services which government should have been providing,” said Kasaila.

He cited Chididi and Mphonde in Nsanje as examples of hard-to-reach areas where residents walk about 15 kilometres to receive a 50kg bag of maize under the food relief programme.

“I can see that you want to buy vehicles for ministers and PSs, which I believe they are entitled to, but I had hoped you would also consider buying trucks for disaster response. Every year this country experiences disasters, yet when they occur we depend on the World Food Programme (WFP) to assist,” he added.

Kasaila also suggested relocating the disaster department to a line ministry to improve accountability and funding oversight.

Cluster Committee Chairperson and Mwanza Central MP Felix Njawala said the committee will push for increased funding to critical areas such as disaster response but expressed reservations about prioritising the purchase of vehicles.

“As a committee we will push for the funding, but we all know that resources are never enough. We may reach a point where we must prioritise the most critical needs. Vehicles may not be a priority over the shortfall at DoDMA,” he said.

Lilongwe City Ngwenya MP Nancy Tembo also criticised the department’s limited focus on disaster prevention.

“When you go on the ground, you do not see much effort in preventing or mitigating disasters. What we mostly see is a reaction after a disaster has already occurred,” she said.

In response, Commissioner for Disaster Management Affairs Wilson Mollen acknowledged that transporting relief supplies remains a major challenge for the department.

He said during the current lean season the department relied on support from the World Food Programme, but funding constraints forced DoDMA to hire private vehicles to transport food and other relief items.

“Indeed, we need more trucks. As a department we currently have only three trucks, and we often have to borrow from other government departments. We should be looking at acquiring more trucks to support food distribution programmes,” said Mollen.

He added that the department is gradually shifting from a reactive approach to preventive disaster management and has so far responded to more than 40,000 disaster cases.

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