By Suleman Chitera
The dust is refusing to settle over the controversial $29.9 million (about K52 billion) passport printing contract awarded to Madras Security Printers Private Limited, with pressure now mounting on government to open the deal to public scrutiny.
The five-year contract, signed in 2025, has again come under the spotlight after the Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiative (CDEDI) accused authorities of shielding a procurement process that it claims was not conducted in the best interests of Malawians.
The deal was awarded after the previous administration, through then Attorney General Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda, cancelled a far costlier $60.8 million (approximately K106.3 billion) contract with TechnoBrain. While government defended the move as a cost-saving measure, critics argue secrecy around the new contract has only deepened public suspicion.
In a fresh appeal, CDEDI has written to Minister of Homeland Security Peter Mukhitho, demanding immediate public disclosure of the contract details. The governance watchdog insists that Malawians deserve to know how the deal was structured and who is benefiting from it.
CDEDI Executive Director Sylvester Namiwa alleged that some individuals are profiting at the expense of ordinary passport applicants, who continue to bear the burden of high passport fees.
“CDEDI is hereby invoking the Access to Information (ATI) Act to demand public disclosure of the said contract, including the full price build-up that has led to the current passport price,” Namiwa said in a statement.
The controversy has resurfaced against the backdrop of earlier clashes between the Tonse Alliance-led government and civil rights groups. Human rights organisations, including Concerned Citizens of Malawi, had previously called for a comprehensive review of the procurement process, warning that lack of transparency undermines public trust and fuels perceptions of corruption.
As demands for accountability grow louder, the passport deal is fast becoming a litmus test for the government’s commitment to transparency, good governance and respect for the Access to Information law—principles it once championed while in opposition.
