adminBradwell Mhonderwa Business Ethics
Whenever the praise and worship team in my church sings certain songs the congregation cannot help but join in and sing along. Some of the songs are so powerful that they move some of the congregants to shed tears as the words cause them to think deeply. There is one song that has such an effect on me, and it goes:
“There is power in the name of Jesus.
“Power to break every chain. I hear the chains breaking.
“I hear the chains falling. There is an army rising up . . .”
Now, when you transport the powerful words of this song to the current anti-corruption crusade which the Government, through the Office of the President and Cabinet, has embarked on, then you realise the nation is finally staring into the horizon of a society on the brink of total emancipation and freedom.
The anti-corruption thrust reminds me of a remark I once made at a business conference I was invited to speak on ethics when I said, “if there is need for a revolution in the country today, it must be an ethics revolution, and this should be so in order to rout unethical practices that have become endemic in the economy”.
Indeed, an all-out war against the population of rogue elements we allowed to freely multiply in our midst has been the missing link in the nation’s struggle to realise its full potential.
The reprobates had become laid-back, finding cover in deceit and false claims of patriotism and loyalty.
They sought to annihilate the whole economy for personal gain.
Over the years they have smeared the sanctity of the land reform, and they now want to do the same with the economic empowerment programme.
They are wolves in sheep skin that must be vanquished.
The rot that’s being uncovered in parastatals and local authorities is simply an epitome of the shenanigans that have become characteristic of our society.
Over the years public office has literally been turned into a vehicle for personal aggrandisement.
Corruption is today the most lucrative business for those in positions of power and influence, and rent seeking is the evil oiling the intricately knitted clandestine networks of plunder and looting.
Encouragingly, as the echoes of the sounding drums of the transformative initiative get louder, the guilty are panicking and getting restless.
They are shaken, and they don’t know who is going to be hit next, and when.
The public is today inspired by what the Government has done at ZBC.
Happison Muchechetere, who is the ZBC CEO, was put on forced leave as investigations into the national broadcaster’s operations are underway.
The vigour with which the Government has spring-boarded the assault on graft has steered public interest never witnessed in this country for a long time now.
Truly, when state power is used to fight corruption the whole nation coalesces for the common good.
The spirited effort has captured the attention of the whole nation, and the people now enthusiastically want to be part of the “battle” because they know that national regeneration is everybody’s business.
This means the state must now move with speed and put in place infrastructure that encourages the public to blow the whistle on corruption, including protecting whistle-blowers from victimisation and retaliation.
The new national policy framework should include the enactment of laws such as the Stolen Asset Recovery Act, Whistle-blower Act, Asset Disclosure Act, and a national ethics policy guideline.
Fighting corruption demands strong and committed leadership ready to lead from the front as what President Mugabe and some of his ministers are doing.
It requires purposeful leadership with a clear understanding of what needs to be done.
Subduing the corrupt demands brave and fearless leaders with the ability to withstand ostracism and demonisation.
Indeed, the Minister of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services, Professor Jonathan Moyo, has shown what it takes to champion such a cause.
The Minister made a clear statement about the Government’s intention and he has followed that up with action.
The general public is inspired by his heroic acts and so it has decided to rally behind him.
You sieve through messages posted on online platforms, and it’s always “go professor go”.
Yes, let him front the cause because he is capable.
The war against corruption can never be hindered by those who over the years have made corruption their way of life.
Unrestrained greed and theft of public assets cannot be synonymous with black economic empowerment, and any obscure and vague attempts to confuse corruption with national security issues can only be the work of criminals and enemies of the state.
Every effort must be made to unmask deceit and greed.
Speaking to the Herald newspaper recently, Professor Moyo said, “The fact of the matter is that corruption is criminal and not political.
“Corruption is not revolutionary but it is a reactionary assault against the public good and the national interest”.
Indeed, corruption has no political colour and we urge the Government to intensify the shake-up.
No amount of grumbling or intimidation should stand in the way of this sacrosanct change, and any such resisting force must be wiped out.
Indeed, what is destroying us is more in us than it is in the world.
The Chinese revolution of the mid-20th century cleared the rot that was in its rank and file.
They saw it devour the Chinese society, and the leadership decided to act firmly on it.
While the ensuing Cultural Revolution had its own excesses, it is indisputable that it was this decisive social intervention that helped shape the foundation upon which the giant miracle economy we call China today was built.
When we conquer corruption, we restore public confidence in government business and break the chains of poverty, joblessness, economic stagnation, capital flight, underdevelopment and hopelessness.
The “Goliaths” of corporate malfeasance must fall and corporate vultures must be vanquished.
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Online Reporter