The Sunday Mail
Lincoln Towindo
The Prosecutor-General’s Office is ready to bring to court all cases of alleged corruption unearthed in several Government ministries, departments and public enterprises by the Government auditor.
Last month, Auditor-General Ms Mildred Chiri produced a report that exposed illicit dealings by several Government and parastatal bossed which prejudiced the State of several millions of dollars.
The Auditor-General’s office audits State operations and related activities.
Following the release of the report, law enforcement officials have been accused of failing to act upon the findings and recommendations, a sentiment that has been raised over the years.
In a brief interview last week after a meeting between Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa and National Prosecuting Authority board members, Prosecutor-General Mr Johannes Tomana said his office would take necessary steps in response to the audit report once due process that leads to prosecution has been followed.
“The report is not a docket, so we cannot act on it as it stands. But once we are presented with a docket arising from the findings from the relevant offices, then we will act,” said Mr Tomana.
Cases of gross mismanagement of public funds have continued to be the major highlight of the Auditor-General report, but the Government has been blamed of failing to act on the reported cases.
Last week, Mrs Chiri invited line ministries to initiate the relevant proceedings that lead to the arrest and subsequent prosecution of the alleged offenders.
There are calls for Government to ensure expeditious prosecution of all public officials exposed by the audit reports.
According to the report, Government could have been prejudiced of hundreds of millions of dollars by many State enterprises among them the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara), Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation and Environmental Management Agency due to mismanagement and poor governance.
Among the cases, Government could have been of prejudiced over US$11 million after Zinara failed to deduct US$7 million being 10 percent withholding tax to 23 suppliers that had no tax clearance. The parastatal further went on to pay US$4,1 million to creditors without authorised payment vouchers. The report further states that senior management were receiving monthly allowances that include US$9 000 holiday allowances outside the payroll. The Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation is reported to have spent US$3,1 million on corporate social responsibility but had no breakdowns of how the money was used. There was also no acknowledgement of receipts from beneficiaries.
The Environmental Management Agency board raised its own fees without approval from the parent ministry, while the Health Services Board approved increased fuel allocations for board members without the concurrence of Treasury among other ills noted.
The Parliament of Zimbabwe was also cited for failing to deduct money from Members of Parliament to recover US$13 million disbursed by Treasury for vehicles under the vehicle loan scheme.
Cases of corruption have been on the increase in Zimbabwe over the years, prejudicing the Government of several millions of dollars.
