July 2 (Bloomberg) -- Malawi's Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe will use the southern African country's ``Consolidated Fund'' for payments because parliament hasn't passed its 2008- 2009 national budget.
With the new financial year having begun yesterday, the government will have to use money from a fund left over from last year's budget, Gondwe said in an e-mailed statement from the capital, Lilongwe, today.
``The constitution allows us to spend for a period of up to four months without parliamentary approval,'' Gondwe said. ``I pray that the speaker of parliament, in consultation with the president, should ask parliament as soon as possible to legitimize this expenditure.'' A maximum of 60 billion Malawi kwacha ($427 million) may be spent, he said.
Opposition parties in Malawi have delayed the budget every year since 2004 in protest against a constitutional impasse with President Bingu wa Mutharika's Democratic Progressive Party.
Wednesday, 2 July 2008
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