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Zimpapers Politics Hub
THE cooperation agreement between the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) and South Korea’s Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) has been made possible because the two sides respect each other as credible partners, the Asian country’s Ambassador, Mr Jae Kyung Park, has said.
Zacc and the ACRC last week pledged cooperation in preventing and combating corruption through signing a memorandum of understanding on the development of technical training programmes for enhancing the anti-corruption capacity and exchange of skills and knowledge.
Last year, Zacc recovered over US$30 million in stolen assets, secured a 74 percent conviction rate and also seized several immovable properties and vehicles in corruption cases. Ambassador Park noted that no country should be complacent in the fight against corruption because “staying put is dangerous”.
“Such cooperation is made possible because the two sides feel each other as credible partners. For Korea, this effort, together with other efforts in the field of agriculture, health and education, are in consistent line with the commitment made during the Korea-Africa Summit held in June last year. Korea will continue to exert unwavering support for the people of Zimbabwe,” he said.
Anti-corruption measures and policies, he added, must be continuously adjusted as societies evolve.
In 2016, South Korea enacted a law that makes it illegal for government officials to accept gifts worth more than US$35 for weddings and funerals.
It also places limits on lunch or dinner expenditures to the same amount.
“Corruption is a common enemy to all, including both developing and developed countries,” he added.
As of February, over 12 600 individuals in both public and private sectors had signed the ZACC Integrity Pledge as a public commitment to act with integrity and support the broader goal of creating a corruption-free society.
Zacc spokesperson Ms Simiso Mlevu said the signing of the Integrity Pledge had demonstrated significant success in contributing to building trust in fighting corruption through engagement and raising awareness.
“This high number of pledges, coupled with increasing requests for sensitisation on integrity and anti-corruption issues across sectors and institutional endorsements through circulars mandating the signing of pledges by public sector entities, suggests a widespread acknowledgement of the importance of integrity and a willingness within the public sector to publicly commit to ethical conduct.
“This indicates a positive initial step and a potential foundation for fostering a more ethical environment and building public trust in fighting corruption,” Ms Mlevu noted.
She said strategies implemented by Zacc have also contributed to good corporate and institutional governance as they have actively promoted a culture of transparency, accountability and integrity, which is a fundamental principle of good governance.
These strategies include compliance and review systems, institutional monitoring and the establishment of integrity committees.
“Zacc conducts checks in both the public and private sectors to assess adherence to good corporate governance principles. These reviews have been instrumental in identifying loopholes and weaknesses in systems and processes that are vulnerable to corruption, leading to recommendations for strengthening these areas,” added Ms Mlevu.
Online Reporter