Syndicates stifling anti-corruption drive
the average Zimbabwean, the fight against corruption is not very convincing and it does appear the authorities are dragging their feet amid unlimited resources and resort to fighting high-profile cases with kid gloves, all this while putting on well-choreographed public relations stunts to hoodwink the gullible. Simply put, the fight against graft may easily be the biggest fraud in the history of the Second Republic.
Zimbabwe is still ranked among the most corrupt nations in the world trending at 157 out of 180 countries, a one place movement from last year.
Our corruption index ranking only increased by two points from 2018 and remained constant at 24 points in 2020 and 2019 (the average score is 24,77 from 1998 to 2019). This is despite that the “Second Republic” boasts the largest anti-graft weaponry of all time in the history of independent Zimbabwe.
Yet, as the figures would show, we have made rather little progress in fighting the vice, thus occasionally bringing the effectiveness of these numerous anti-graft institutions under scrutiny. The general perception is that they are not effective.
The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc), although having been given a new set of “sharp fangs”, repeatedly failed to make a meaningful “bite”, a development that prompted authorities to find a “helper” in the form of the Special Anti-Corruption Unit (Sacu) whose mandate was to help it and other anti-graft bodies to improve their effectiveness. But two years after, convincing results are still to come.
It is perhaps the realisation that little progress is being made, despite unlimited resources at the State’s disposal, that riled both Sacu head Thabani Mpofu and Prosecutor-General Kumbirai Hodzi and raised suspicion that a “third force” might be derailing their efforts. Obviously, the problem can’t lie with them. That is unthinkable! How can it even be possible?
Is it not strange that Hodzi admitted that there are flaws within the State’s anti-corruption apparatus. In fact, the seemingly choreographed Zacc arrests have gained notoriety, earning them the moniker “catch and release” because that is what they appear to be.