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THE measures employed by Government to combat corruption need to be refined and updated on an ongoing basis to cater for and arrest the mutations of the two-headed Hydra, a Cabinet minister has said.
Zimbabwe is not immune to corruption and, for that reason, has established, through the Constitution, two institutions to fight corruption, the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Emmerson Mnangagwa has said.
He was speaking at the annual conference of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Zimbabwe held in Bulawayo last week.
The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission is established in terms of Section 254 of the Constitution and is mandated to, among other things, investigate and expose cases of corruption in the public and private sectors and to promote honesty, financial discipline and transparency.
Section 255(1) (e) of the Constitution empowers the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission to direct the Commissioner-General of Police to investigate cases of suspected corruption and to report to the Commission of the results of any such investigation.
“The Commissioner-General of Police must comply with any directive given him or her by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission. The Commission is also able to refer matters to the National Prosecuting Authority for prosecution,” said Minister Mnangagwa.
The National Prosecuting Authority is established in terms of Section 258 and it is responsible for instituting and undertaking criminal prosecutions on behalf of the State.
The NPA is therefore the responsible authority for ensuring that individuals or entities that have engaged in corrupt or fraudulent activities are brought before the courts and dealt with accordingly.
“These two entities are required to carry out their functions without fear or favour. It is essential that criminal prosecutions are carried out against corrupt and fraudulent individuals so as to send a clear message to would be perpetrators that they are answerable to the law,” said Minister Mnangagwa.
The Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act (Chapter 9:23) criminalises various acts which are regarded in society as being of a corrupt nature, according to the minister.
“Section 170 of the Act, for example, makes it an offence for one to obtain or agree to obtain, or to solicit or agree to solicit for a bribe.
“There are also pieces of legislation that have been enacted to try and eliminate any fraudulent activities within the public sector such as the Procurement Act (Chapter 22:14) which sets out specific procedures that must be followed when a procuring entity seeks to procure goods or services,” he said.
Minister Mnangagwa said accountability and transparency are key result areas identified in the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation.
Zim-Asset is the country’s economic blueprint aimed at ensuring economic growth.
Minister Mnangagwa said accountants have a critical role to play as they have technical expertise and know how relating to financial transactions.
“The fight against corruption is one which requires all sectors of society to participate as professional accountants cannot win this fight alone.” said Minister Mngangagwa.
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