PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government spent over US$10
billion in unbudgeted public finds, and now wants Parliament to okay the
unexplained expenditure, raising the ire of opposition members of Parliament.
Government last Thursday published the Financial Adjustment
Bill HB19 of 2019 in which it seeks to offload US$10,6 billion onto taxpayers
the borrowings which were made without consent from Parliament.
“If a government ministry or department spends money in any
financial year in excess of the amount appropriated, or for a purpose for which
nothing was appropriated, the Minister of Finance is required, in terms of
section 3017 of the Constitution, to cause a Bill condoning the unauthorised
expenditure … In line with the above, we seek condonation
for unauthorised expenditures incurred by line ministries,” reads the Bill.
Public Accounts Committee, chairperson and former Finance
minister Tendai Biti said the Bill was an attempt to legalise theft of public
funds by the ruling elite.
“They stole US$10 billion which they are now asking
Parliament to accept and forgive! Most of that money, US$8 billion was stolen
in the two years of Emmerson’s reign,” he tweeted yesterday.
According to the Bill, the money was borrowed as follows:
2015, US$25 305 741; 2016, US$1 530 890 050; 2017, US$4 562 064 122 and 2018,
US$3 560 343 130, leaving the unauthorised government debt at US$10 679 603
044.
Biti said the Financial Adjustments Bill was poorly crafted
and did not even tell Parliament exactly how the money was used and by which
particular ministry, raising fears that it could be a grand cover up of
looting.
“The Bill is poorly crafted, a reflection of party State
conflation. It has no tables disaggregating the expenditure, a deliberate
attempt to hide and deceive. Contrary to the Constitution it doesn’t give a
breakdown of what the amounts were used for to justify condonation. The
breakdown of the rapid rise extraction and theft under Emmerson is
self-evident,”Biti told NewsDay yesterday.
Mabvuku legislator James Chidhakwa said the Bill will be
scrutinised and the Executive will be asked to account for money he alleges
could have been looted for political party campaigns.
“How does a government blow $8 billion in just two years
and preach austerity at the same time. It’s time we demand answers from a
government that blames everyone else for our problems except themselves. These
guys were and are still looting this country clean, then they blame sanctions,”
he said.
Economist Godfrey Kanyenze, gave PAC a thumbs up saying:
“This was discussed by the PAC and now government is coming out clean and
trying to sanitise themselves. This shows that the fiscal indiscipline
continued way after (the late former President Robert) Mugabe and still
continues today.”
Kanyenze said the US$10,6 billion debt also shows that
while government was preaching austerity, those in power continued to siphon
money while the ordinary person was hit hard in the pocket.
“Austerity is hitting the ordinary person, while those with
power are dipping from government coffers. There is clearly a culture of
looting and failure to respect the laws in the manner of transparency,
especially by the ministry of Finance,” he said.
The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) immediately
demanded an independent audit of the debt saying citizens should know how the
money was used first before being asked to condone the debt.
“Fundamentally there must be a debt audit not only for this
particular debt, but for many others to establish what the money was used for.
No doubt the money was used for nefarious activities, especially the factional
fights in Zanu PF from 2015. No doubt some of it could have been pocketed by
individuals. This is the right time for Parliament to state its authority and
demand an audit of these debts,” ZCTU president Peter Mutasa said.
Social Commentator, Rashweat Mukundu called for an urgent
review of laws to help entrench accountability and transparency, particularly
on how public funds are used.
“The whole thing essentially shows how the ministry of
Finance and government departments are subverting the laws and the Constitution
to abuse the public purse and now coming to seek to legalise their actions.
This points to lack of transparency and the need to review laws,” he said.
Newsday
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