By Cathy Maulidi:

The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has said it is monitoring the situation at the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services, eight months after bureau officials seized 28 mobile phones and cash from officers following complaints of alleged corruption.

ACB Principal Public Relations Officer Egrita Ndala told The Daily Times that the bureau is still holding on to the mobile phones it confiscated.

She added that mobile phones that were not connected to alleged corruption would be returned.

“The investigation has been completed, but we are monitoring ongoing issues at the department. Our standard practice after completing an investigation is to return items not connected to the case,” Ndala said.

In July last year, ACB officials confiscated mobile phones from officers who were suspected of facilitating corrupt practices.

The ACB’s intervention followed widespread complaints from passport applicants, who claimed that they were facing significant challenges in accessing passport services.

During a visit to the department in July last year, ACB acting Director General Hillary Chilomba told journalists that the probe would continue.

“We are continuing our investigations. We have new evidence that will lead to further arrests. More arrests are coming,” he said at the time.

However, Ndala revealed in the interview that no additional arrests had been made.

“The bureau has not made any further arrests since those conducted last year,” Ndala said.

Last July, the bureau arrested four officers— whom it identified as Madalitso Nanthulu, Wilson Tepeka, Kondwani Banda and Pearson Msiwa—and two non-staff members, namely Agnes Master and Pauline Kampala, who were suspected of acting as agents.

Ndala confirmed that some suspects were taken to court and had entered pleas.

“Some suspects are in court and entered pleas last week. The case is ongoing,” she said.

Meanwhile, some immigration officers have expressed disappointment with the ACB’s handling of the investigation.

“It has been over eight months since they took the mobile phones and cash and I don’t believe this is a professional way of conducting investigations,” said one officer.

Commenting on the development, Nicholas Mwisama, a good governance expert with Transparency Initiative, said the ACB had taken “too long” to address the matter.

“It has been eight months and for the bureau to simply say they are monitoring the situation is unfortunate. We should start questioning the relevance of the ACB as an anti-corruption institution. Sinc