THE HON. SPEAKER: When they are elected.
HON. MARIDADI: When they are elected, Hon. Mayor Wadyajena, his constituency from where it starts to where it ends, it is 140 km of tattered and dust road. If you give Hon. Wadyajena a Ford Ranger and you tell him to go to his constituency, he only needs to drive to his constituency four or five times and the vehicle is buggered – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – Ministers get fuel allocation for them to drive from their homes to the office. When a Minister is venturing just a foot outside Harare, they claim fuel separately. We know that when they claim fuel, they inflate the figures. When a Minister goes to Mutare sleeping at Amber Hotel, they will claim fuel for the furthest part of Manicaland, say Chisumbanje.
Time limit
HON. CHINOTIMBA: My point of order is that I move that the Hon. Member’s time be extended by 10 minutes – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Your point of order Hon. Chinotimba is accepted, except that the maximum extension of time is five minutes.
Motion put and agreed to.
HON. MARIDADI: Mr. Speaker, let me say I am so happy with Hon. Chinotimba. This is the spirit that we want when we are talking about things that affect all of us, national issues, collectively we must be in unison.
Mr. Speaker, I had left a very important aspect when I spoke about these two companies. When I went to buy these blankets on 23rd January, the owner of this company is a Chinese lady called Michelle. I saw a Minister of Government sitting in Michelle’s office. Michelle knows about me because I approached and said, Michelle I know what you are doing and how you are prejudicing Government and that Minister is helping you in that criminal endeavour. That Minister is helping you to evade paying Hon. Chinamasa but let me tell you, when it comes to the crunch that Minister will not be able to help you. There was a Minister who was seated in that office and Hon. Chinamasa, when you go for Cabinet, tell them that is what I said. You will see the Minister will start melting on his or her own.
Mr. Speaker, Ministers of this Government need to rise above corruption. Corruption is killing this country and that corruption is not perpetrated by somebody who comes from Mozambique or a poor person who comes from Binga North but by somebody who holds a position of authority and in the majority of cases these corrupt people are based in this capital of Harare. If we do a life audit you will be shocked with the number of things that you will see. Members of this Parliament, and I am one of them, struggle when we go to our constituencies. There is not a Member of Parliament in this House who has a constituency member saying, who would spend a day without receiving a call from a constituency member saying someone is ill or has died or school fees is needed – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
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