CHAPTER
XVIII |
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FINANCE
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Revenue |
171.
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No
tax, rate, duty, levy or imposition shall be raised, levied or imposed
by or for the purposes of the Government or any local government authority
otherwise than by or under the authority of the law. |
The
Consolidated Fund |
172.
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All
revenues or other moneys raised or received for the purposes of the Government
shall, subject to this Constitution and any Act of Parliament, be paid
into and form one Fund, to be known as the Consolidated Fund. |
Withdrawal
of money from the Consolidated Fund |
173.
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No money
shall be withdrawn from the Consolidated Fund except -
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to meet expenditure that is
charged upon the Fund by this Constitution or by any Act of Parliament
consistent with this Constitution; or
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where the issue of those moneys
has been authorized by an Appropriation Act, a Supplementary Appropriation
Act or by an Act made in pursuance of subsection (5) or of sections 178,
179, 180, 181 or 182 or by a resolution of the National Assembly made in
accordance with section 177:
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Provided
that this subsection shall not apply to any sums mentioned in section 175
(3).
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Where any moneys are charged
by this Constitution or by any Act of Parliament upon the Consolidated
Fund, they shall be paid out of that Fund by the Minister responsible for
Finance to the person or authority to whom the payment is due.
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No moneys shall be withdrawn
from the Consolidated Fund except in the manner prescribed by the National
Assembly.
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The investment of moneys forming
part of the Consolidated Fund by way of deposit with a bank or such other
secure investment as may be approved by the National Assembly shall not
be regarded as a withdrawal of those moneys from the Consolidated Fund
for the purposes of this Constitution.
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Notwithstanding subsection
(1), provisions may be made by or under an Act of Parliament authorizing
withdrawals to be made from the Consolidated Fund, in such circumstances
and to such extent as may be prescribed by or under such Act of Parliament,
for the purpose of making allowances to persons or authorities other than
the Government:
Provided that - |
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no moneys shall be advanced
from the Consolidated Fund under this subsection save on condition that
they are repayable by the person or authority to whom or on behalf of whom
they are advanced; and
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this section shall not apply
with respect to -
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the proceeds of Government
loans raised for a specific purpose under an Act of Parliament;
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money or interest received
by the Government subject to a trust;
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advance drawings and repayments
of those drawings, authorized by the National Assembly; and
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such special funds under this
Constitution where it is specified that this section should not apply.
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Expenditure
charged on the Consolidated Fund |
174.
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There shall
be charged on the Consolidated Fund in addition to any grant, remuneration
or other moneys so charged by this Constitution or any Act consistent with
this Constitution -
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all debt charges for which
the Government is liable;
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all pensions, compensations
for loss of office and gratuities for which the Government is liable;
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any moneys required to satisfy
any judgement, decision or award made or given against the Government by
any court or tribunal other than those provided for in the National Compensation
Fund; and
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all moneys or debt charges
charged before the appointed day upon the revenues or public funds of Malawi.
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For the purposes of this section,
"debt charges" includes interest, sinking fund charges, the repayment or
amortization of debt, and all expenditure in connexion with the raising
of loans on the security of the Consolidated Fund and the service and redemption
of debt thereby created.
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Annual
estimates |
175.
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The Minister
responsible for Finance shall lay before the National Assembly a statement
of the estimated receipts and the expenditure of the Government in respect
of that financial year, other than the sums specified in subsection (3).
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The statement of estimates
shall be laid before the National Assembly in respect of every financial
year and shall be so laid before the commencement of that financial year.
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Where the National Assembly
does not propose to debate the estimates until after the commencement of
the financial year to which they relate, the estimates of the revenue may
be laid before the National Assembly at any time before the commencement
of such debate.
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The estimates of expenditure
shall show separately -
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the total sums required to
meet the expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund; and
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the sums respectively required
to meet the heads of other expenditure proposed to be met from the Consolidated
Fund.
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The sums to be shown in the
estimates of receipts and expenditure shall not include -
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sums representing the proceeds
of any loan raised by the Government for a specific purpose and appropriated
for that purpose by the Act authorizing the raising of the loan;
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sums representing any money
or interest on money received by the Government subject to a trust and
to be held or applied in accordance with the terms of that trust;
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sums representing moneys authorized
to be advanced from the Consolidated Fund under an Act of Parliament and
repayments thereof; and
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sums representing moneys received
for or to be applied from any special fund established and regulated by
this Constitution or by an Act of Parliament which provides that subsections
(1) and (4) shall not apply to that fund.
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Appropriation
Bills |
176.
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When
the estimates of expenditure to be met from the Consolidated Fund, but
not charged thereon, have been approved by the National Assembly, a Bill,
to be known as an Appropriation Bill, shall be introduced in the Assembly
providing for the issue from the Consolidated Fund of the sums necessary
to meet that expenditure and the appropriation of those sums, under separate
votes for the several heads of expenditure approved, to the purposes specified
in the Bill. |
Supplementary
appropriations |
177.
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If in respect
of any financial year it is found -
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that the amount appropriated
by the Appropriation Act for any purpose is insufficient, or that a need
has arisen for expenditure for a purpose for which no amount has been appropriated
by the Appropriation Act; or
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that any moneys have been
expended for any purpose in excess of the amount (if any) appropriated
for that purpose by the Appropriation Act,
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a
supplementary estimate showing the sums required or spent shall be laid
before the National Assembly and the heads of any such expenditure shall
be included in a Supplementary Appropriation Bill or in a motion or motions
approving such expenditure.
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Where any supplementary expenditure
has been approved in a financial year by a resolution of the National Assembly
under subsection (1), a Supplementary Appropriation Bill shall be introduced
in the National Assembly as soon as practicable after the commencement
of the financial year next following, providing for the appropriation of
the sums so approved.
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Authorization |
178.
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The
National Assembly may make provision under which, of expenditure in if
it appears to the Minister responsible for Finance that the advance of
Appropriation Act in respect of any financial year will not come into appropriation
operation by the beginning of that financial year, he or she may authorize
the withdrawal from the Consolidated Fund of moneys for the purpose of
meeting expenditure necessary to carry on the services of the Government
until the expiration of four months from the beginning of that financial
year or the coming into operation of the Appropriation Act, whichever is
earlier:
Provided that provision
for any moneys so withdrawn shall be included, under the appropriate heads,
in the Appropriation Bill. |
Contingency
Fund |
179.
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The National
Assembly may make provision for 1 of 1997the establishment of a Contingencies
Fund and for authorizing the Minister responsible for Finance, if he or
she is satisfied that there has arisen an urgent and unforeseen need for
expenditure for which no other provision exists, to make advances from
that Fund to meet that need.
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Where any advance is made
from the Contingencies Fund, a supplementary estimate shall, as soon as
practicable, be presented to and voted by the National Assembly and a Supplementary
Appropriation Bill or motion approving such expenditure in accordance with
section 177 shall be introduced for the purpose of replacing the amount
so advanced.
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Raising
of loans by the Government |
180.
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A loan may
be raised by the Government under the authority of an Act of Parliament
and not otherwise.
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Parliament may, in the Act
authorizing the raising of a loan or by any other Act, appropriate the
proceeds of the loan for specific purposes and authorize the payment of
such proceeds out of the Consolidated Fund for such purposes.
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Special
funds and trust moneys |
181.
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An Act of
Parliament may, subject to section 182, make provision for the creation
of special funds which shall be accounted within the accounts of the Consolidated
Fund and for the regulation or management of the moneys accounted in such
special funds.
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An Act made in accordance
with subsection (1) may provide that sections 175 (1) and 175 (4) shall
not apply to any particular fund.
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Parliament may make provisions
regulating the manner in which moneys or investments held by the Government
subject to a trust are to be accounted for.
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The
Development Fund |
182.
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There
shall be a special fund within the Consolidated Fund to be known as the
Development Fund in which shall be accounted receipts and expenditure of
the Government relating to the development of the Republic, which have
not been included in the annual statement provided for in section 175,
and estimates of such receipts and expenditure shall be submitted by the
Minister responsible for Finance to the National Assembly not less than
once a year.
When the estimates of expenditure
to be met from the Development Fund have been approved by the National
Assembly, a Bill to be known as Appropriation (Development Fund) Bill shall
be introduced in the National Assembly providing for the issue from the
Development Fund and appropriation of the sums necessary to meet that expenditure. |
Protected
expenditure |
183.
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There shall
be a special fund within the accounts of the Consolidated Fund upon which
shall be charged certain protected expenditure.
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The Minister responsible for
Finance shall, before the commencement of every financial year, make provision
in the Annual Appropriation Bill for the purpose of voting sums for the
purposes of the fund under subsection (1) and such provision shall be passed
without revision by the National Assembly, save where it is insufficient
to meet the expenditure to be charged for the purposes of the fund, in
which case the National Assembly may revise the Bill so as to accommodate
the expenditure to be charged.
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No money shall be withdrawn
from the Consolidated Fund save in respect of the following classes of
expenditure -
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the salaries of the President
and of the Chief Justice, Justices of Appeal and of the High Court;
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the salary of the Ombudsman;
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the expenditure incurred to
convene Parliament.
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Auditor
General |
184.
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There shall
be the office of the Auditor General who 6 of 1995shall audit and report
on the public accounts of Malawi, and shall exercise such other powers
in relation to the public accounts and the accounts of public authorities
and bodies as may be prescribed by an Act of Parliament, in so far as they
are compatible with the principal duties of that office.
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The Auditor General shall
submit reports at least once a year to the National Assembly, through the
Minister responsible for Finance, not later than the first meeting of the
National Assembly after the completion of the report.
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Appointment to the office
of Auditor General shall be made by the President and confirmed by the
National Assembly by a majority of the members present and voting, but
the Public Appointments Committee may at any time inquire as to the competence
of the person so appointed to perform the duties of that office and as
to the financial probity of a person so appointed, so far as it is relevant
to the duties of that office.
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The office of the Auditor
General shall become vacant after the person holding that office has served
for five years, but the person holding that office may be nominated for
such further term not exceeding five years, as the President deems appropriate.
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The office of the Auditor
General shall be a public office.
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A person holding the office
of Auditor General shall be subject to removal by the President only by
reason of that person being -
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incompetent in the exercise
of his or her duties;
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compromised in the exercise
of his or her duties to the extent that his or her financial probity is
in serious question;
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otherwise incapacitated; or
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over the retirement age.
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Subject to subsection (6)
in the exercise of the duties and powers vested in the office of the Auditor
General by this Constitution or any other law, the person holding that
office shall not be subject to the direction or control of any other person
or authority.
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No person or authority may
inhibit the Auditor General in the conduct of his or her functions and
duties.
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