30 COPS CONVICTED FOR CORRUPTION - MINISTER
THIRTY-NINE Zambia Police officers have been prosecuted between 2015- 2018 for engaging in corruption related activities, acting Home Affairs Minister Given Lubinda has said.
And Mr Lubinda said Government was dismayed by the recent Transparency International Corruption Perception Index which ranked Zambia Police as the most corrupt institution in Zambia.
He said of the 39 police officers, 30 were convicted, five were acquitted, while four were still appearing in court.
He urged the officers to always conduct themselves in an ethical and professional manner, adding that complaints of low salaries could not justify them to engage in corruption.
He said Government had since scaled up measures to curb corruption in the Zambia Police Service and cited the establishment of integrity committees, introduction of direct payment system and abolishment of unnecessary roadblocks as some of the steps Government was undertaking.
Mr Lubinda was responding in Parliament yesterday to Choma Central Member of Parliament Cornelius Mweetwa who wanted to find out whether Government was aware that the Zambia Police Service was ranked as one of the leading corrupt institutions on the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index.
“Government is aware of the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index and we have read this report with dismay. We have put in place a number of measures to curb this corruption in the Zambia Police Services. Among the measures, we have established integrity committees which are responsible for promoting ethical conduct and professionalism in the Zambia Police Service.
“We have also introduced the direct payment system where offenders are required to pay their required to pay their fines and fees through the banks to prevent officers handling cash money from the offenders. This will promote transparency and reduce corruption,” Mr Lubinda said.