By Senator Jameson Timba
The revelations contained in the Auditor-General’s reports and detailed in the investigation concerning the use of nearly US$400 000 of public funds to upgrade the private residence of the Senate President (Mabel Chinomona) are deeply disturbing and demand immediate action.
This is not a matter of political opinion. It is a matter of law, ethics, and accountability.
The facts, as presented by the Auditor-General, are clear: procurement laws were repeatedly violated, competitive tender procedures were bypassed, and public money was used to finance private benefit.
Such conduct, if left unaddressed, represents a gross abuse of office and a betrayal of citizens who are already struggling under economic hardship, collapsed public services, and declining living standards.
Zimbabweans have seen this movie before.
In South Africa, when public funds were unlawfully used to upgrade former President Jacob Zuma’s private residence, the matter was tested before the highest court.
The outcome was unambiguous: the money had to be paid back.
Accountability was enforced, not negotiated.
The same principle applies here.
Where public funds have been improperly used for private benefit, the beneficiaries must pay back the money.
There can be no exception simply because the office involved is senior, or because the institution concerned is Parliament itself.
More troubling still is the broader institutional context. Parliament is the country’s foremost oversight body.
If Parliament itself becomes a site of systemic corruption, then a fundamental constitutional question arises: who guards the guardians?
For this reason, I call for:
A full, independent forensic audit of Parliament, covering procurement, asset upgrades, fuel allocations, and all discretionary expenditures;
Immediate investigations by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) into the transactions flagged by the Auditor-General;
Equal scrutiny of all senior parliamentary office-holders, including whether similar public expenditures were incurred at the Speaker’s residence or offices;
Full cooperation with the Public Accounts Committee, without secrecy, obstruction, or exclusion of the media.
Accountability cannot be selective. Anti-corruption cannot be a slogan applied to political opponents while power shields itself.
These revelations also arrive at a sensitive national moment. Parliament is being positioned as the vehicle for far-reaching constitutional changes under the so-called 2030 Agenda.
A Parliament tainted by corruption cannot credibly claim a mandate to extend anyone’s term of office, let alone rewrite the social contract with the people.
Zimbabweans are entitled to better. Public money must serve public good — not private comfort.
The law must apply equally, or it applies to no one.
Those responsible must account.
And where money was wrongly taken, it must be paid back now.
