THE Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Corruption (ZACC) yesterday
said it is concerned about the public perception that suspects are only
arrested as a window dressing measure and is working with partners to improve
its services.
In an interview on the side-lines of a national
anti-corruption development strategy workshop in Bulawayo, ZACC Commissioner
Thandiwe Mlobani said ZACC is not facing any political interference but cases
may sometimes be complex with whistle-blowers also not forthcoming.
She said as an anti-graft commission they are aware of the
label that they are involved in the catch and release of suspects.
Catch and release refers to the hype of arresting suspected
corrupt officials before they are released by the courts with the cases
dragging for too long.
Comm Mlobani said corruption was very complicated and ZACC
wants to establish shortcomings that could be in existence and address them.
“It’s true that the public has raised this concern about
catch and release and they have attributed it to ZACC. Unfortunately, it’s not
ZACC’s responsibility alone. This is a whole process. ZACC according to the
Constitution and the Act is mandated to carry out investigations, so ZACC only
investigates cases of corruption and once the cases have been completed ZACC
then refers the cases to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA),” she said.
Comm Mlobani said the NPA takes the case to a magistrate or
High Court judge for prosecution who will then determine whether to detain or
release a suspect.
She said suspects also have rights just like any other
citizen that must be upheld and respected.
“In cases where ZACC has investigated and carried out an
arrest and submitted the case to the NPA and it takes over and presents the
case before a magistrate and someone apparently looks like they are being
released, it’s because there are so many laws that are there. One, you are
innocent until proven guilty and secondly, there are rights that everyone has
according to the Constitution and human rights globally, so we have to respect
those rights,” said Comm Mlobani.
She said as a commission they invited the NPA, police,
Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services among other stakeholders to its
two-day anti-corruption development strategic workshop which ends today, to
come up with strategies to fight corruption.
“We are here to look at the inter value chain as a national
strategy to see how we can work together and ensure that we have quality
investigations, we have quality prosecutions to give us the results that we
want, convictions that will lead to us being able to recover assets that would
have been stolen. That’s why we are here to look at that. We appreciate the
concerns from the public, we are also concerned, the NPA is concerned and the
judiciary is also concerned,” Comm Mlobani said.
She said it was high time that the Whistleblowers Act was
enacted so that whistleblowers have confidence in reporting graft cases.
Chronicle
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