Immigration officials redeployed

Rutendo Nyeve, Sunday News Reporter

The Department of Immigration has redeployed its officers from various stations and ports of entry countrywide as part of measures to curb corruption.

While official records say the redeployment was in line with standard operating procedures to transfer all those who have been at their stations for over five years, insiders said authorities were not happy with some cases of corruption that implicated immigration officers.

According to a memo dated June 30, and signed by the Department of Immigration’s Acting Director Administration Human Resources and addressed to all regions, stations and sections, ten Principal Immigration Officers stationed at Victoria falls were transferred to Robert Mugabe International Airport.

The officers who covered various ports of entries in the resort town including Victoria Falls border post, Kazungula border post and Victoria Falls International Airport are the latest officers to be transferred.

Sources at the Department of Immigration said the transfers commenced last year and more officers continue to receive their transfer letters. Some of the transfers are reported to have no effective date pending finalisation of a few logistical issues.

The Department of Immigration Director General Ms Respect Gono confirmed the transfers but refused to give further details.

“I cannot comment on those transfers,” said Ms Gono.

However, sources within the department said officers were aware about the transfers which began last year.

“Most of the officers were already aware of the imminent transfers following recent transfers in various stations,” said the source.

So far, three hundred junior and senior police officers were reshuffled last week as part of an ongoing routine restructuring that sees officers moved between provinces at the top layer and between stations and headquarters.

The police force tends to move officers to ensure they retain a breadth of outlook and do not become totally cemented to a particular post for many years.

Of the 300 police officers, 100 are senior officers while the rest are junior members, who have been transferred to police stations and police headquarters countrywide.

@nyeve14