As the country's corruption watchdog continues seizing ill-gotten wealth, our reporter Wallace Ruzvidzo (WR) had an exclusive interview with former Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission Chairperson Justice Loice Matanda-Moyo (JMM) just before she was appointed as the Prosecutor-General by President Mnangagwa last week.
WR: In our last interview you said ZACC was targeting to recover US$1 billion ill-gotten wealth, are you still confident in meeting the target?
JMM: ZACC is confident that ill-gotten proceeds of crime of more than USD1 billion are out there and will be recovered. The Commission has made tremendous strides thorough domestic and regional co-operation. Case files for asset recovery and forfeiture have been referred to the courts through the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Unit (AFRU). Working jointly with ZIMRA, ZACC through its Investigations Department has also engaged in "Operation No to Abuse of Civil Servants Rebate Scheme". The operation anticipates conviction-based forfeiture of about 2 000 vehicles which were acquired through the abuse of the civil servants' rebate scheme. The Commission, through the Compliance and Systems Review Unit and AFRU has also facilitated administrative recovery measures for public entities and local authorities wherein assets like funds, land and immovable properties were unprocedurally parcelled out. These entities were flagged in the Auditor General's Report. This process has managed to plug and reverse leakages of revenue back to the public purse.
WR: How much has ZACC recovered so far this year?
JMM: ZACC set the targets for recoveries and consolidation is ongoing. However, indications from the internal monitoring system are that the commission is on course to achieving over 70% target. Statistics and figures will be released at the end of the year.
WR: What was the progress on implementation of the Auditor General's report?
JMM: Remarkable progress has been made regarding the enforcement of the Implementation of Auditor General report recommendations. ZACC realised during the Compliance Checks and Systems and Processes Review that institutions were not implementing recommendations by the Auditor General and other External Auditors. The issues raised by the Auditor General and External Auditors were recurring, indicating possible deliberate disregard of the recommendations, resulting in institutions staying with generally weak systems.
From 2021, ZACC has been sending call to action letters to all parastatals and local authorities regarding the recommendations by the AG. The Commission also requests and receives quarterly reports regarding the status of the implementation of Auditor General and Auditors' recommendations.
More than 60 parastatals have responded positively. Local authorities, both urban and rural have also responded positively. The Commission's monitoring system proves that at least 70% of parastatals and local authorities are now implementing the recommendations from the Auditor General's reports. The Commission continues to monitor and analyse the levels of compliance.
Outcomes of ZACC's interventions regarding implementation of the AG's report are in the public domain. Officials from parastatals and local authorities have been arraigned before the courts for contravening various laws. ZACC has conducted investigations into the National Social Security Authority; Premier Service Medical Aid Society; Tobacco Industry Marketing Board; Zimbabwe United Passenger Company; Council for Legal Education; Industrial Development Corporation to name a few.
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WR: As we head towards the end of the year how many cases have you dealt with this year?
JMM: To date ZACC has referred 157 dockets to the National Prosecuting Authority for prosecution. Thirty-three case files have been referred to the NPA for non-conviction-based forfeiture.
WR: What has been the conviction rate of cases referred by ZACC this year?
JMM: From the cases referred to the NPA, ZACC has this far achieved 77% conviction rate. This is 5% improvement from the 72% conviction rate recorded in 2022 (see ZACC 2022 annual report https://zacc.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/ZACCAnnual-Report-2022.pdf). The Commission remains optimistic of securing more convictions in the last quarter of 2023.
