President Mutharika said this in his new year message to the nation where he, for the first time, publicly said is aware of reports implicating police officers in defilement and rape. Mutharika says he believes the truth will be established in the matter.

The president has also used his new year message to launch political attacks on his rivals and civil society organisations such as the Human Rights Defenders Coalition, which has been critical of his administration in 2019, accusing it of behaving like a terrorist organisation.

The Malawi Human Rights Commission recently released a report on investigations into the Msundwe saga and confirmed reports of 17 cases of sexual abuses including defilement and rape.

Meanwhile, at a New Year ball at the police headquarters in Lilongwe last evening, Acting Inspector General of Police Duncan Mwapasa said a report on investigations into the Msundwe saga would be released in two weeks time.

Mwapasa said he shall not shield any police officers implicated in the report. Meanwhile, Mwapasa also said his office is probing findings of the recently released MHRC report on the same saga.