Transparency International Zambia (TIZ) says there is need for the country to have high ambitions in fighting corruption because it is the major cause of poverty among the people in the country.
TIZ president Reuben Lifuka says it is regrettable that the nation does not seem to be so ambitious in fighting the scourge.
He said the country seems to be content with a few convictions in the courts of law, the 0.2 percent improvement on the TI Corruption Perception Index and relax in praises for minor achievements from the international community.
He said the country’s fight against corruption needs a new lease of life.
Mr . Lifuka was speaking in Lusaka today during the commemoration of the International Anti-Corruption Day.
He said Zambia has high ambitions in its socio-economic development but not so much in fighting corruption which he said needed more attention.
He urged government, civil society, and cooperating partners to be more ambitious in fighting corruption, adding that the country cannot afford to fail in the fight against corruption.
Meanwhile Mr. Lifuka has said the successes scored in the fight against corruption should not make the nation complacent as the fight was far from over.
Mr. Lifuka observed that the fight against corruption in Zambia was still in its early days and that the country’s fight against graft was yet to take a form and shape that would ensure long term success.
He said the theme for this year’s observance of the International Anti-Corruption Day which is “Don’t Let Corruption Kill Development” and the motto for the 2009 anti-corruption campaign “Your No Counts” are both appropriate for Zambia and should serve as a call to action for all stakeholders.
He said it was encouraging to note that the country has registered some positive strides in the fight against corruption but insisted that these were small steps in a very long journey.
“These developments represent some motion but with limited movement. Yes, we have seen some changes-but some of these remain cosmetic and more can be done not just by Government, but the private sector, NGOs, Trade Unions, the Church, Young Zambians and cooperating partners”, he said.
And speaking earlier, Chairperson of the African Parliamentarians Network Against Corruption (APNAC) Zambia Chapter Given Lubinda said APNAC was determined to continue to motivate African governments to forge the fight against corruption from rhetoric to action.
Mr. Lubinda said there was no doubt that Zambia, like any other nation, needs enhanced collaboration with other governments, intergovernmental agencies, and Non-governmental organizations in the fight against graft because the vice knew no boundaries.
He said time has come for the country to hate corruption as it was clear that corruption and disregard for the rule of law have overtime constituted the greatest impediments to Zambia’s development.
ZANIS
It is good to talk about need to fight corruption and arrest those engaged in corrupt practices but when is corruption said to be corruption?. Early this year a report about a very serious corrupt act in which a parastatal organisation lost millions of dollars was reported and documents surrounding the scam were handed-over to an anti-corruption officer but alas the official involved was protected by people in government. The same official has since been employed by the government at one of the ministries. It therefore buffles me when the government officials talk about need to curb on corrupt tendencies when in reality these are the same chaps encouranging it by supporting and shielding their corrupt relatives and friends.