The Herald
Herald Reporter
THE House of Assembly yesterday ratified the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption which seek to provide a legal framework for curbing the vice at global and regional levels.
Minister of State for State Enterprises, Anti-Monopolies and Anti-Corruption Cde Paul Mangwana told the House that the two conventions were pivotal in enhancing global and regional cooperation against corruption. He was moving a motion for the ratification of the conventions. The minister said corruption required zero tolerance hence it must be confronted and eradicated at all costs. “We need to ratify these conventions in order to usher our country into the global fight against corruption. We need to restore hope and remove fear from our people,” he said. Corruption, Cde Mangwana said, was a threat to national stability as some foreign elements could sponsor opposition parties through dubious means, adding that tolerance for corruption could lead to a self-induced regime change. He said the Government had also ratified the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) Protocol against Corruption and had set up the Anti-Corruption Commission as part of its efforts to effectively deal with the vice. Contributing to the debate, Kambuzuma MP Mr Willias Madzimure (MDC) said staff in the Attorney-General’s Office and the police should be well remunerated to guard against the temptation of being involved in corrupt activities. He said the AG’s Office should be semi-autonomous to enable it to carry out its mandate effectively. Mr Madzimure said the continued increase in the prices of basic commodities could only be attributed to corruption with the manufacturers and retailers bent on profiteering. “We have shortage of fuel but the black market is being fully supplied. Where are the dealers getting money to buy the fuel?” he said. Bulawayo South MP Mr David Coltart (MDC) welcomed the two conventions but said there was need for Government to double its efforts in the fight against corruption. “It is very difficult in Zimbabwe to pin point corruption but it is easy to see its effects and one of the effects of corruption is the decline of the economy,” he said. The opposition legislator said the Government was not sincere in its efforts to curb the vice and this was evidenced by a long history of corruption cases that had not been finalised such as the War Victims Compensation Fund scandal and the VIP housing scandal. Mr Coltart said there should also be legislation making it compulsory for senior civil servants to declare their property as some of them were amassing wealth through corrupt activities. In response, Cde Mangwana said Government was serious in its quest to curb corruption and no one would be spared in the anti-corruption drive. “Among us, yes, we have corrupt people and they will be dealt with in terms of the law,” he said. The minister said a number of Bills seeking to strengthen the fight against corruption would be introduced in the House. Government, Cde Mangwana said, intended to introduce the teaching of ethics in primary and secondary schools next year with a view to cultivate a culture of honesty and integrity among the young generation.