Senator Kambizi says corruption is evergreen in Zimbabwe
Senator Eleven Kambizi says the subject of corruption is evergreen in the country and has undermined the social and economic development of Zimbabwe.
The Senator who was making a contribution to a motion on the introduction of deterrent services for those engaging in corrupt activities, went on to list the forms of corruption happening in Zimbabwe.
‘’I would like to make a brief contribution to the motion raised by Honourable Senator Tongogara, a motion that was extensively debated by many Honourable Members. The subject of corruption is a subject that is evergreen in Zimbabwe. Like I said earlier on, it has undermined and continues to undermine development in this country.
‘’Corruption continues to be pervasive and pernicious to the detriment of the country. Mr. President, corruption is defined in the First Schedule of the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission Act as follows; ‘an act of soliciting, accepting, giving, obtaining, promising or offering of a gratification by way of a bribe or other personal temptation of inducement’.
‘’In other words, corruption refers to misuse and abuse of public office for private gain. It is also a form of dishonest or criminal offence undertaken by an individual or a firm that has authority in order to acquire illicit benefits,’’ he said.
Below are the types of corruption that were listed by the Senator as happening in Zimbabwe:
‘’Allow me Mr. President to go through the types of corruption that are taking place in Zimbabwe. The types are quite numerous but allow me to go through the most common ones.
Bribery
‘’The first one is bribery which is a criminal and corrupt practice where an entity offers something of value to a corporate or a public figure to solicit for cooperation or influencing of a decision-making process. We have seen this happening in most companies. You get to somebody who is in authority; he is given maybe $100 so that the person influences a quick decision to the benefit of the person who is seeking such a service that is bribery. Instead of taking the normal channel and allow the actual process to take place, people are not patient and bribe to quicken the process.
Extortion
‘’Secondly, I talk of extortion. This is very rampant in this country. Extortion refers to the demand for a bribe for a service before it is given, ah ndipe $10 ndiite ichi – that is extortion. You want to apply for a piece of land, can I have $200 so that process goes quickly, and that is extortion. You are getting the money by cohesion. I did not want to pay you because this is Government land and you are asking me for $200 so that you give me the land, this is extortion.
Cronyism
‘’We also have what we call cronyism. This is a practice of partiality in awarding of employment and other benefits to friends and relatives. Who is my relative? There is a vacancy at a certain company; I cannot give Mrs. Muzenda the post because I need a friend or relative. That is cronyism. We also have nepotism which is very common. People are working at a company and a vacancy arises in the company, I cannot give it to someone who deserves it. I would rather opt to give my friend or relative who does not have the proper qualifications that are required. That is corruption and it is happening everywhere even at the teacher training colleges, nursing schools or boarding schools. Mwana ane four units cannot get a place but somebody comes in with 14, 15 or 16 units, you find them at that school.
Graft
‘’Then we have graft which is the unscrupulous use of a politician’s power for personal gain. This usually happens by misdirecting public projects to gain benefits. Mr. President, I am happy when I am talking to legislators who are supposed to be involved in the fight against corruption. I am sorry to liken this to you so that it becomes very clear. We have CDF and I am not shy to say this. Please I beg that you do not ask for examples, I am just saying this in passing. There are certain projects that are supposed to be performed by CDF but many times we go to the constituencies, and you hear people saying we do not even know what CDF is. We do not even see where it is used and that is corruption because that fund has been diverted for somebody’s personal benefit.
Embezzelement
‘’We go on to embezzlement, which is an element of fraud and normally involves white-collar jobs, vaye vanoba nepenzura but it is also a form of corruption. I just decided to talk of these so that we sail on the same frequency because when we talk of corruption, it is not one activity. There are many activities that constitute what we call corruption. Corruption is one of the unholy trinity of dirty money together with criminal and illegal commercial activities,’’ said the Senator.
