Maridadi says prosecutor-general and police must sit on the Public Accounts Committee to deal with those who misuse government funds

The Auditor-General’s Office is a creation of the Constitution of Zimbabwe and it is accountable to Parliament.  The Auditor-General sits in the Public Accounts Committee as a technical person to give technical advice.  Year-in-year-out, the Auditor-General produces this book – [Hon. Maridadi shows out the Auditor-General’s Annual Report Book] – and gives us recommendations.  However, the recommendations by the Auditor-General have never been implemented.  I think one very refreshing thing about what is happening in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development now is that, they have engaged a very progressive Accountant-General.  A very progressive man who has effected a lot of changes and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development is beginning to look well because of the gentleman they engaged.

Mr. Speaker Sir, let me briefly go on to talk about four key pillars of this Government.  In brief, I will talk about local authorities, state-owned enterprises, Government and the private sector.  There is a narrative report that was referred to by Hon. Minister Kasukuwere yesterday and the day before on local authorities.  It makes very sad reading.  What is happening in our local authorities makes very sad reading, needless to say that local authorities are at the core face of Government service delivery.  People communicate with Government through local authorities and state enterprises.

I will then go to State owned enterprises.  In Zimbabwe, we have more than 85 parastatals or State owned enterprises.  Not one of them has made a profit in the last 10 years.  State owned enterprises are supposed to participate in business at a profit and they are supposed to declare dividend to Government.  Not one of them has declared a dividend to Government since 2000 and Mr. Speaker, that is a cause for concern.  What then happens is that in order for State enterprises to be kept afloat, they go back to Government for bail out.  I am talking of the NRZ.  The NRZ recently got a loan of US$5 million.  The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Transport, Hon. Nduna here, spoke about how that money has gone down the drain because NRZ is not in a position to be able to utilise that money, make a profit and pay back to Government.

I will talk about ZUPCO.  Mr. Speaker if you want to see the development or otherwise of a country, you see it by the type of public transport that is available in that country.  Zimbabwe’s soul public transporter in urban areas was ZUPCO.  ZUPCO is an architect of public transport from the 1960s and it existed until the 80s.  ZUPCO, Mr. Speaker, to all intents and purposes is dead.  What worries me about the death of ZUPCO, Mr. Speaker, is that there was a lady presiding over ZUPCO as Chairperson for the past 25 years.  Mr. Speaker, the same lady has been appointed substantive Chairperson of Air Zimbabwe.  What is it that she has done at ZUPCO that we like so much that she must go and do at Air Zimbabwe?  I will leave that.

I will talk about Government departments.  Mr. Speaker, I went through this audit report painstakingly and I came up with this document here, which I can make available to Members of Parliament.  I want to go through it Ministry by Ministry.  Mr. Speaker, there is not a Ministry where there is an accounting officer who has not been caught by the Auditor General off side.  Ministry of Industry and Commerce issued loans without signing loan agreements.  ZISCO Steel – US$11 633 012 respectively.  Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development’s loan agreement to Farmers World, debt for 2014, US$11566000 and in 2013, US$11 833 000.

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