Demands by some staff in the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services for removal of director general Charles Kalumo are finally attracting government’s attention.
On Monday, Minister of Information and Digitisation Moses Kunkuyu said that at the moment the Ministry of Homeland Security was yet to revert on the way forward after some staff raised concerns against their boss last week, but there is movement on the matter.
“The ministry will address the issue, but as of now they have not yet given a response” said the official government spokesperson.
About 300 Immigration staff across the country have threatened to shut down their offices, including at airports and land border posts if government fails to fire Kalumo by tomorrow.
The staff made the resolution during a meeting held last week at the Immigration headquarters in Blantyr.
One of the senior officers who attended the meeting accused Kalumo of destabilizing the department’s hierarchy through unjustified changes.
The staff’s spokesperson Charles Chisi said that the workers expect the issue to be addressed without the strike.
He also said that Immigration is a disciplined department. They hope government will respond positively to their demands within the agreed period of 10 days to avert the planned industrial action.
The officers last week gave Kalumo 10 days to reign allegations of a tyrannical administration and unfair interdictions.
Chisi added that a team was sent on Monday to represent the disgruntled staff, presented a petition to government through Maganga, who is to have promised to act within the stipulated period.
“The staff want Kalumo to be removed for allegedly verbally suspending several officers without according them the right to be heard.
A group of passport- seekers early last month, petitioned President Lazarus Chakwera to fire Minister of Homeland Security Ken Zikhale Ng’oma and Kalumo within 15 days for allegedly failing the nation.
Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) has asked the President to address the crisis rocking the department, including removing Kalumo.
HRDC chairperson Gift Trapence and national coordinator Kelvin Chirwa released a statement on June 2 2024 implores Chakwera to terminate the passport issuing contract with local firm E-Tech Systems and facilitate an open tender process for passport printing.
Malawi is reeling under a passport production crisis that has left Immigration with a passports application backlog of 35,000 against a printing capacity of about 500 booklets a day.
The country has experienced passport issuance challenges ever since Attorney General Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda in December 2021 cancelled a $60.8 million (about 103.3 billion) Techno Brain contract due alleged poor handling of the contract.
Source: Nation Online
