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Prosper Dembedza Herald Correspondent
A 28-year-old registered nurse stationed at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals yesterday appeared in court facing allegations of soliciting for bribes from student nurses who had failed their exams to facilitate better results for them.
Memory Makura appeared before Harare magistrate, Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa.
She was granted US$200 bail.
The complainants are Wellington Zunga and Nisbert Mukungureyi
The court heard that sometime in May 2020, the complainants and Makura were enrolled in a General Nursing Course at Sally Mugabe Central Hospital School of Nursing.
They wrote their final exams in April, 2023.
It is alleged that in May, 2023, their results were released. The complainants failed while Makura passed.
Zunga and Mukungureyi were automatically readmitted by Sally Mugabe Central Hospital School of Nursing to rewrite their exams on August 9, 2023.
However, Makura approached and advised the complainants that she could assist them in changing their exam marks before the results were published.
The complainants ignored the request and went on to rewrite their exams.
In September last year, the exam results were released and the complainants were verbally notified by Sally Mugabe Central Hospital School of Nursing Principal tutor, a Mrs Murombedzi, that they had failed again and therefore they were both dismissed from the nursing school.
A fortnight later, the Ministry of Health and Child Care called the two for a redress. Gwanda Multi-disciplinary School enrolled them for a six-months training.
As they were preparing for the exam, they were called by Makura and were told that they were continuously failing the exams because they were not willing to pay some money to the Nurses Council of Zimbabwe (NCZ).
Makura claimed that her uncle at the NCZ could change any exam mark at a fee of US$500 per each failed exam paper. She offered to link the complainants with her uncle.
The court heard that the complainants filed a complaint against Makura at the Gwanda Multi-disciplinary School.
The institution and the NCZ advised the complainants to play along with Makura in order to trap her. Zunga and Mukungureyi then engaged Makura over the issue. They sat for the exams in March this year.
Makura then notified the two that they had failed again and she had liaised with her uncle to alter their marks. She said her uncle required US$500 from each of them for his service.
The matter was brought to the attention of the authorities and the NCZ filed a report against Makura at Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC).
ZACC investigation officers laid a trap, culminating in Makura’s arrest after she received US$500 from them.
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