Corruption engulfing Zimbabwe like cancer

via Corruption engulfing Zimbabwe like cancer | SW Radio Africa by Tichaona Sibanda 24 October 2013

Corruption is increasingly becoming a way of life and an endemic feature of society in Zimbabwe, according to a retired senior police officer.

Former assistant commissioner Isaac Dziya said reports that the country lost $2 billion to corruption last year, as revealed by the commissioner-general of the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA), are very disturbing.

Gershom Pasi, the ZIMRA boss, said corruption in Zimbabwe had reached unprecedented levels and government could not be alone in dealing with the fight.

‘Government needs partnership with the private sector and the society at large. There will be synergies that accrue when the public sector and the private sector join hands,’ he said. This comes as the country was rated among the most corrupt nations in southern Africa in a recent Transparency International (TI) survey, ranking 163 out of 176 countries.

TI’s corruption perception index — ranking countries and territories based on how corrupt their public sector is perceived — indicated that Zimbabwe’s corruption record continued to worsen after falling nine places from 154 last year.

But ex-cop Dziya told SW Radio Africa on Thursday that there is no political will in the country to eradicate corruption, as those in power have overstayed.

‘The political will is lacking because the incumbents are benefitting from the corruption. They are in power following two controversial elections and it’s now a question of looting and protecting each other to stay in power,’ Dziya said.

An economic analyst told us that in everyday life people have accepted corruption as part of the culture.

‘From a business executive in Harare to a magistrate in Gweru, a traffic policeman along the Kambuzuma road, a kombi driver in Chitungwiza and a worker at the passport office, corruption has become so endemic that it corrupts everyone.’

‘A cancer-like situation is engulfing the political system, which is harmful for growth. Certainly the country needs chemotherapy at this critical hour,’ the analyst said.