Zimpapers Logo

Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Reporter
THE fight against corruption should be extended to the private sector that has also been involved in unscrupulous dealings destabilising the country’s economy, a Cabinet Minister has said.

Government, apart from fighting corruption, has also promulgated a number of pieces of legislation meant to stabilise the economy and this is beginning to pay off.

Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said this during a Facebook live interview with prominent broadcaster Ezra Tshisa Sibanda yesterday.

The interview touched on a wide range of issues from the country’s response to Covid-19, the country’s economy, independence of the Judiciary, Government’s stance on corruption, media among others.

Minister Mutsvangwa said while some Government officials have been accused of corruption, the fight against corruption must be taken to everyone, even players in the private sector as some of them have a case to answer.

Minister Mutsvangwa said President Mnangagwa’s administration was indiscriminately fighting corruption and anyone found on the wrong side of the law will have his or her day in court.

Quizzed on why alleged corrupt former Cabinet Ministers were being granted bail, the minister said, it was not for the executive to answer as there is separation of powers. She said granting or denying bail was the prerogative of the Judiciary and not the executive.

“I’m not exonerating anyone because I don’t know what they do, what deals they do but what I’m saying as people of this country, the assumption is that every Cabinet Minister is corrupt which is wrong,” said Minister Mutsvangwa,

“You exonerate private sector as if they are not corrupt. I’m not saying let’s not talk about Cabinet Ministers who are corrupt but as people of this country, let’s look at corruption as corruption from private sector, church. We have seen big mobile companies dealing in foreign currency in this country thereby making currency unstable but following the promulgation of the two statutory instruments by the President to address the issue, we are beginning to see stability.”

One of the legal instruments is 185 of 2020 which allowed businesses to trade using foreign currency with Government abolishing mobile money wallet agents as they are no longer serving any legitimate purpose.

Minister Mutsvangwa said the economy is now on a recovery path as prices of most commodities have started to stabilise following several legal instruments put in place.

She said infrastructure development projects were being undertaken such as the construction of roads and setting up of power generation plants in line with the Zanu-PF election manifesto.

Cde Mutsvangwa said even the broadcasting sector will have new players as television licences will soon be issued.

She said the blame game will not develop the country and called for unity of purpose on matters concerning Zimbabwe. — @nqotshili.