Maravi

Citizens Forum urges politicians to make corruption fight a campaign issue

Citizens Forum urges politicians to make corruption fight a campaign issue
By Chibaula Silwamba
Tue 19 July 2011, 14:00 CAT

POLITICIANS must sign social contracts with Zambians assuring to bring back the abuse of office clause and fight corruption, says an anti-corruption advocate.

In an interview yesterday, Citizens Forum executive secretary Simon Kabanda urged politicians to make the fight against corruption a campaign issue and assure Zambians that they would fight the vice. He said it was unfortunate that corruption had become endemic and was being practiced openly in and outside the government.

“What is worse is that even the law that was being used to punish those who were abusing their offices for corruption has been removed. Therefore, the first thing we want the politicians who are campaigning for election to office this year is that they must assure us that Section 37 of the ACC Anti Corruption Commission Act will be brought back,” Kabanda said.

“The assurance that we want from the politicians is for them to put it in writing and sign a social contract with the people of Zambia to say that ‘our political party or myself as a presidential candidate will ensure that these provisions of the law to fight corruption are brought back so that corruption can be curbed in our country’.”

He said word-of-mouth assurances would not be adequate.

“Even if they say they are not going to allow corruption and will prosecute culprits waste resources, it will not work because the provision for doing that has been removed,” Kabanda said.

“What has happened after removing that provision is that people are not scared anymore. When that provision was in place and people were being prosecuted, a lot of people were afraid to abuse their offices. Yes, corruption was going on but certain people were afraid ‘that the law will catch me’. But that fear has been removed by removing Section 37 of the ACC Act.”

The Rupiah Banda-administration in November last year removed Section 37 from the ACC Act.

Labels: CITIZENS FORUM, CORRUPTION, SIMON KABANDA

posted by MrK @ 3:30 PM