It's not all dark on the other side: Saluting some icons of integrity in Zimbabwe's public service

At the beginning of February 2022, my mother fell ill. We spent the rst week getting her treated by private doctors who told us that the problem would go away in a day or two if she took some prescribed medicines. We did this because we feared putting our beloved mother in the hands of the government medical system, whose challenges were well documented, including doctors and nurses who had a reputation for arrogance and lack of care.

The treatments were unsuccessful. Like most Zimbabweans, we could not escalate her treatment to the private hospitals we preferred. My mother was formerly employed by the Posts and Telecommunications Corporation, now Tel One. The deteriorating economy and repeated dollarization has eroded the value of her pension and benets. Most civil servants who were employed before the 2000s are in a similar predicament. The value of their hard work and contributions to this country have simply gone up in smoke. Worse, those who are in retirement cannot access decent medical services. My father, who died 22 years ago, worked for the Electricity Supply Commission, later ZESA, and part of his death benets included medical aid for my mother on the pension scheme. You see, the ESC had joined the Public Service Medical Aid Scheme in 1967. Being affordable, the scheme is also quite popular. But despite the high numbers of subscriptions, the fund has not maintained its reputation with service providers and is not accepted by many private doctors and hospitals. When accepted, it comes with a ton of shortfalls.

Nonetheless, it enabled my mother's hospital admission and treatment. This rst-hand experience of the government system was surprising. The doctors and nurses were brusque. We did have to source medicines and sundries from private pharmacies. But my mother received treatment and is now recovering at home. My experience gave me cause for pause. It made me reect on life and its meaning, care and how to give it, and my general perceptions around the civil service on account of my daily encounters with doctors, nurses, and orderlies.

In Zimbabwe, hardly a day passes by without the press exposing corruption, or some public ofcial caught up in a scandal. The idea that civil servants arrive at work put jackets on chairs, and tend to their private business outside the ofce is commonplace. Stories of bribes, corruption, arrogance, and public service incompetence are as common as dirt. Zimbabwe ranks among the most corrupt countries in the world (157th out of 180 countries, Corruption Perception Index, Transparency International, 2021), with 25% of public service users reportedly paying a bribe in the last year (Global Corruption Barometer, Transparency International, 2021). Sometimes those engaged in corruption are punished, demonstrating that we see it as an unwanted scourge in our country. Naming and shaming lousy behavior and sanctioning it shows that corrupt behavior is not condoned. But the rampant nature of unethical behavior, and the pervasiveness of corrupt practices suggest systemic failures that will take a while to address. While we celebrate the tough stance on these malpractices, we cannot ignore that; often, the most corrupt among us are beneciaries of the "catch and release" phenomenon. This erodes trust in the public service, robbing citizens of condence in the systems that are supposed to serve them. Most Zimbabweans (80%) believe they will face state reprisals if they report corruption to authorities (Afrobarometer, 2021). Our communities do not feel safe. Neither do they believe that they are party to a social contract based on service, or that the government will uphold its responsibility to provide these with the dignity of compassion for every citizen, integrity, accountability, and ethical leadership.

We spend too much time naming and shaming the bad boys and girls.

We give more attention to wrong-doers, and not enough to those who live by their values, go above and beyond the call of duty, and practice ethical leadership. But in our communities, the lived experience is different. We all know someone in the public service who operates based on professional and ethical values, is honest, keeps their word, and does not accept "something" in return for their services. Think of the no-nonsense inspector at the Vehicle Inspection Department (VID), only known as "chief," or the brusque but efcient sisters at the district hospital. These are real people, like Mr. Mundofa of Chimandau School, celebrated by Mary Mundeya on Twitter, who go over and above the call of duty to take on nine classes. The reality is that some public servants demonstrate the ability to meet citizens' needs with compassion, respect, professionalism, integrity, and efciency. They make governance work for the people and try in their daily lives to live with integrity.

In April 2021, Accountability Lab declared its intention to honor public servants who operated with integrity as identi  ed by their communities. We are doing this through the Integrity Icon campaign. This is a campaign that identies public servants who personify ethical leadership and practice in their day-to-day business. The Campaign asks citizens to take a moment to reect on and celebrate those who do good by "Naming and Faming" them. These reections generate debate around the ideas of integrity. At the same time, the Icons inspire hope and show that no matter how dark it may appear in the public service, there are some glimmers of light. By modeling the values of honesty, personal responsibility, and integrity, Icons show their communities what is possible. They help build trust and show us that unethical leadership and corrupt practices are a choice and that it is possible to create an alternative culture.

Some communities in Goromonzi, Bulawayo, and Harare share our beliefs that a society in which integrity is a core value and the norm rather than the exception is possible. They believe that people like Sister Rumbidzai Chikwavaire at Chinyika Clinic in Goromonzi, and Health Promotion Ofcer Anesu Chinguwa at Ingutsheni in Bulawayo are public servants who personify the values of integrity, compassion, and professionalism. They believe that Headmaster, Evermore Chakwizira, from Chinyika High School, Madam Ruvimbo Matore at Tendayi Primary School in Mufakose, and Madam Nomsa Dhlodhlo from Helemu Primary School in Bulawayo, have gone over and beyond the call of duty to provide education in their communities. Despite poor pay, badly resourced working conditions, and other issues, all these teachers continued to educate most of their students without asking for extra fees and have innovated schemes to bring income to the schools without increasing the burden on already distressed parents.

The above founding class of Integrity Icons in Zimbabwe and some of the reform ideas that the Public Service Commission is championing on ethical public service give me hope. My own experience with medical professionals showed me rsthand that it is not all dark. These encounters strengthened my resolve that we all must play our part to surface, celebrate, connect with, and support Icons of Integrity and hold them high as good examples for the public and the next generation of public servants.

In our small way, we aim to do this as Accountability Lab through the Integrity Icon Campaign and invite you to journey with us in our pursuit of changing culture and making integrity the norm rather than the exception in our society.

McDonald Lewanika (PhD)

Country Director: Accountability Lab Zimbabwe