Its actions have raised hopes in the country, plugged by rampant corruption, that finally something is being done to rid Zimbabwe of the scourge that is spreading like cancer.
Analysts have lauded the commission’s robustness and zest but warned that this could soon come to naught once influential politicians started throwing spanners into its work to cover up their dirty tracks.
So far, the ACCZ dragnet has only managed to catch small fish. These include Chitungwiza Town Council clerk and housing director Godfrey Tanyanyiwa and Jemina Gumbo respectively; former Zifa chief executive officer Henrietta Rushwaya, St Mary’s MP Marvellous Khumalo and a prosecutor Moffat Makuvatsine.
The analysts said the commission’s mettle would only be shown if they arrested any one of the senior politicians in President Robert Mugabe’s cabal, accused of rampant corruption since the country’s independence.
Such political indifference on corruption has blighted the country’s international image. Zimbabwe is now ranked among the most corrupt nations perched on number 145 out of the 186 countries listed on the Corruption Perceptions Index released last year.
Transparency International
Zimbabwe (TIZ) fears that the commission’s work might be scuppered by lack of political will to tackle corruption in the country. TIZ executive director, Mary-Jane Ncube said the commission was further hamstrung by the fact that it does not have powers to prosecute those it would have arrested.
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“Its success will depend on the political will of the leadership, which we are still to see,” said Ncube.
“The commission does not have powers to prosecute. It has to refer the cases to the AG’s office (Attorney General) and prosecutions would have to be carried out with that office’s consent.”
Anti-corruption commission must go for Big fish— Mavhinga
Political analyst Dewa Mavhinga said ACCZ must make a clear statement of its commitment to anti-corruption by going for the “big fish”. Through such a bold move, he said, the commission would gain national credibility.
“When that happens citizens will be convinced that the ACCZ means business, the arrests made so far are insignificant — they are nothing to write home about,” said Mavhinga.
There are several high-profile corruption cases that were swept under the carpet in the past two decades involving very senior officials still serving in the coalition government.
The most notable cases are the War Victims’ Compensation Fund scandal, Grain Marketing Board scandal, VIP Housing fraud, the Harare Airport Tender and Willowgate scandal.
The culprits remain untouchable years after the cases were exposed.
Political interference might hinder ACCZ efforts — analysts
The commission is mandated to secure the prosecution of persons guilty of corruption, theft, misappropriation, and abuse of power with the assistance of the police and other investigative agencies of the state through the AG’s office.
Ncube said there was need to review the laws to give the commission a full mandate and capacitate it to enable it execute its duties independently. The commission does not have enough investigators to work on cases.
“The ideal situation is for the establishment of a special tribunal, with the commission having its own magistrates and prosecutors so that they can see through all their cases,” said Ncube.
Zimrights director Okay Machisa lauded the ACCZ’s efforts to stamp out corruption but also added that the commission must extend their efforts to political and business heavyweights that have become untouchables for a long time.
“We want them to extend their arm to the political heavyweights in government whose corruption tendencies have been exposed in newspapers and other public forums,” said Machisa. “They must account for the properties that they acquired then and now.”
Analysts fear that ACCZ could suffer the same fate as South Africa’s Scorpions which were disbanded when they started investigating powerful figures. The Scorpions were investigating President Jacob Zuma and then National Police Commissioner Jackie Selebi on corruption charges.
During that time Selebi, who is now serving a 15-year jail term for corruption, branded the investigations of his alleged ties to organised crime as a vendetta by his enemies within the Scorpions and National Prosecuting Authority.
The Hawks, a unit set up to replace the Scorpions, does not have the same powers as their predecessor. “If there was political will, the Scorpions would have survived,” said Ncube. “We are still to see if we have political will here in Zimbabwe.”
Efforts to get a comment from ACCZ chairman Denford Chirindo last week on whether the commission had the nerve to resist political interference were fruitless as he was said to be attending a funeral in Manicaland province.
