adminTawanda Musarurwa Business Focus
ONE simply has to commend the Speaker of the National Assembly Jacob Mudenda for bringing to the fore a matter that many people had chosen to discuss in whispers, that of limited academic qualifications of some legislators. Earlier this week, this writer was fortunate to attend a Parliamentary Portfolio Committee meeting where National Social Security Authority was giving oral evidence to the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee.
This particular meeting gave the writer a brilliant insight into how a strong Parliament is of crucial importance to economic development.
The way they grilled NSSA management over the use (or misuse) of public pensions and the authority they exercised was astonishing. But these were just a few – less than a fifth of the legislators that constituted the particular Committee – who seemed to have a good comprehension of the “evidence” that NSSA general manager Mr James Matiza was giving.
It could be just this writer’s opinion but the balance either seemed impartial, indifferent or perplexed. Among some of its numerous roles, Parliament is key in holding public institutions accountable for public funds, the so-called “power of the purse” or Financial Control.
Take, for example, this Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee that was recently taking NSSA to task. First, it is mandated to examine the financial affairs and accounts of Government departments and state-owned enterprises. Second, it examines all reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General.
And third, it fulfils the oversight function of Parliament by looking at the financial accounts of departments funded from public funds. It boggles the mind then, how corruption can thrive if such committees can effectively hold State institutions accountable.
The issue then goes to those who constitute these committees. Do they have the requisite education and capacities to exercise the powers that their positions grant them?
Said Speaker Mudenda recently: “They come by popular vote. The only requirement is that you should be over 18 and be a registered voter. So, you get people who are so popular for some reason and come to Parliament but they do not have the basic academic tools to understand some of the Bills . . . Some of the Bills address complicated and technical issues and they get lost (during debate).”
It is a brilliant observation; one that appreciates the fact that the productivity of the Parliament is not indifferent to the members who constitute it. The legitimacy of Parliamentary Committees is measured by the roles played by their members and how these members perform effectively.
Critically then, there should be a mechanism in place to ensure that the candidates with the required educational qualifications are elected into Parliament in the first instance. This post audit committee system offers a good remedy to defects in the democratic process.
But it is important for the members that constitute committees – in this case, the Public Accounts Committee – to be intellectually competent to exercise financial oversight responsibility over Government departments and parastatals.
It is probable that most of the “SalaryGate” scandals would have been nipped in the bud years ago had Parliamentary Portfolio Commitees, such as the Public Accounts Committee, been more effective in years past.
Now that numerous incidences of “SalaryGate” and tender flouting practices have been expressly reported in Zimbabwean media and globally, the eyes of the world are upon Zimbabwe to see the next move.
The Parliament needs to take decisive action on State enterprises found on the wrong side of the law. Besides forming a positive image for the country, decisive action on the corruption cases will help debunk a mounting culture in which corruption is viewed as permissible.
Zimbabwe needs to be seen as acting decisively on corruption if the country is to regain investor confidence. This has not been the case in the recent past as the country has always been ranked very lowly on international corruption indices.
For instance, according to the 2013 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) that was released in December last year, Zimbabwe was ranked 177 out of the 177 countries included in the index.
The CPI is published by respected global organisation Transparency International, and is used to rank countries in accordance with the perceived levels of corruption in the public sector.
Whether Zimbabwe respects it or not is neither here nor there. Global investors do take note of the Corruption Perception Index, which probably explains foreign direct investment flight from Zimbabwe. It’s only fair. Any serious investor will check a country or company’s history before the releasing of funds; good business practice.
So it is absolutely critical that the Parliament begins to show high levels of efficiency in dealing with these issues. What Speaker Mudenda did was to start debate on an issue that many people have long realised as a chief deficiency in our Parliamentary system.
It needs to go on.
This week’s Business Focus has been written by a guest columnist. Victoria Ruzvidzo will be back next week. Tawanda Musarura can be contacted at [email protected]
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