President Emmerson Mnangagwa says a total of $850 million has been repatriated back in Zimbabwe through the measures put in place by the new political dispensation to fight corruption.
With only seven months since the advent of the new political dispensation in Zimbabwe, President Mnangagwa has already demonstrated his commitment in fighting corruption through various strategies which began when he declared a three month moratorium to those involved in illicit financial transfers that have prejudiced the country of billions of United States dollars.
After the moratorium deadline expired another month was given to allow those who had faced challenges to comply, after which a name and shame list of companies and individuals who had not complied was published in the media.
Steps are now being taken to bring to book through the courts those who have failed to account for their illicit external financial transfers.
In his contribution to the 31st African Union (AU) Summit theme entitled, “Winning the Fight against Corruption-A Sustainable Path to Africa’s Transformation” in Mauritania, President Mnangagwa said from Day 1 of the new dispensation in Zimbabwe, government prioritised the fight against corruption and established special anti-corruption courts and made it mandatory for ministers to declare their assets as well as establishing a new Anticorruption Prosecution Unit within his office and the enactment of the Public Entities Corporate Governance Act.
Besides the new initiatives by the new dispensation, Zimbabwe adopted the convention on preventing and combating corruption which has been ratified by 40 countries.
Zimbabwe has also signed and domesticated SADC, AU and UN legal instruments meant to fight the scourge of corruption and it honours the reporting obligations including to the AU board on corruption.
President Mnangagwa said the country also has an anti-corruption commission which serves as a whistle blower highlighting and exposing cases of corruption, adding that corruption networks are becoming more and more complicated, hence the need to enhance information sharing amongst member states and their law enforcement agencies and related institutions on the continent and beyond.
He called on governments, the private sector and civil society to play their part in the fight against corruption saying that is a battle that African governments must win.
He paid tribute to Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari for championing the AU theme – “Winning the Fight against Corruption-A Sustainable Path to Africa’s Transformation”.
While most of the African countries spoke of the various constitutional bodies that they have put in place to fight corruption, it appears the cancer is on the increase with the illicit flows amounting to US$50 billion annually.
The speakers were the Presidents of Algeria, Mozambique, Morocco, Burkina Faso, Egypt, and Botswana among others.
Source: Bulawayo24
