Government has — with immediate effect — suspended Vehicle
Inspectorate Department (VID) officials from Marondera and Beitbridge depots on
allegations of corruptly issuing provisional driver’s licences to undeserving
people. Those suspended in Marondera are depot manager Mr S. Kachere and his
two subordinates Messrs J. Musosi and D. Chingwaru, while in Beitbridge acting
depot manager K Mutatabikwa and an official T. Maposa were sent home.
The suspensions followed an investigation by The Herald at
Marondera VID Depot which exposed that officials were taking bribes to issue
provisional driver’s licences to undeserving people.
A Herald investigative journalist was issued with an
authentic learner’s licence after paying the mandatory “bribe” at VID Marondera
Depot.
On Thursday, Transport and Infrastructural Development
Minister Joel Biggie Matiza promised that action would be taken against the
corrupt officials, and yesterday he followed that by suspending them.
In a statement yesterday, Minister Matiza said his ministry
had a zero tolerance policy on corruption in line with the aspirations of the
new dispensation and a committee had since been set to investigate cases of
corruption in Marondera and Beitbridge.
“The Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development
Joel Biggie Matiza wishes to inform members of the public that due to the
allegations of corruption levelled against VID Marondera, the Marondera depot
manager S. Kachere has been suspended together with officers involved in
corruptly issuing provisional learners’ drivers licences, namely J Musosi and D
Chingwaru,” reads part of the statement.
“At VID Beitbridge, the acting depot manager K. Mutatabikwa
and an officer T. Maposa who are alleged to have improperly issued learners’
drivers licences to undeserving applicants have been suspended pending
investigations.
“As a result, an investigation committee has been set up to
carry out investigations on the business processes so as to come up with findings
and recommendations.”
Minister Matiza said as a result of the rampant reports of
corruption at VID depots, Government would expedite the computerisation of
learners’ driving tests countrywide.
“The Electronic Learner Licensing Testing (ELLT) system
which has already computerised VID Eastlea, VID Chitungwiza and VID Bulawayo
will be speedily rolled out to provincial capitals such as Gweru, Masvingo,
Mutare and then spread out to all other towns countrywide,” said Minister
Matiza.
The strategy, according to the statement, is being
implemented to curb corruption on the issuance of learners’ licences
countrywide.
The Ministry has a zero tolerance policy to corruption in
line with the aspirations of the new dispensation.
“Therefore, on 16 March 2016, the Ministry introduced Toll
free lines with the following numbers 08013121, 08013122 and 08013123 for
members of the public to report corruption whenever they are asked for a bribe
by anyone to obtain a drivers’ licences or to pass a vehicle for a certificate
of fitness. The Toll free numbers are displayed on all VID vehicles, at VID
depots notice boards and within the VID premises for public to use them. I also
urge members of the public to report corruption to the nearest Zimbabwe
Republic Police Station so that the culprits are brought to book.”
The computerised learners driving test entailed that the
computer randomly chooses questions for the learners from a pool of questions
loaded in the computer and that though learners sit for the same test, they don’t
answer the same questions and the computer automatically do the marking once
the learner answers the last question. Herald
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