The Sunday News
Economic Focus Patience F Madambi
THE public stripping and exposure of former vice president, Dr Joice Mujuru whose portfolio included the running of State Enterprises and Parastatals (SEP’s), as an alleged corrupt leader who endorsed the siphoning of resources from targeted SEP’s makes for interesting times as the thousands of compromised workers wait in great expectation for the pending audits which should result in the removal of non-compliant executive officers as promised by President Mugabe.
And more often than not, the President is known to keep his word.
It has been an open secret these past 14 years that executive officers of SEP’s have systematically turned Government entities under their care and management into personal spring boards for their own businesses and personal enterprises at the expense of not only the hapless workers but the development of the country.
Most executive officers have remained rooted in non-performing entities which are generally performing below 10 percent of their capacity in order to take advantage of the intelligence their positions avail to them. It is this information which is then manipulated to set up or enhance their private enterprises.
So it is with this in mind that the invitation by the President of Zimbabwe for anyone with concrete evidence of counter-productive activities by any Government employee including heads of SEP’s should be taken to heart if things are to improve. Just like the once political stalwarts who have now fallen by the wayside, the executive officers at SEP’s should be open to disciplinary measures regardless of the fact that they were appointed on patronage basis. This should be done to safeguard Zimbabwe’s assets.
State Enterprises and Parastatals provide diverse services to both the public and corporate institutions thereby providing a platform upon which other economic activities can ride and grow such as telecommunications, transport services and infrastructure, energy and power.
These activities facilitate wealth through industrial and manufacturing sectors including the financial and retail sectors.
In essence, SEP’s are key enablers that facilitate economic growth and sustainable development.
So it does not need us to get academic, technical or apply fancy jargon to fully appreciate the need to straighten out the corporate governance issues at the over 100 parastatals in the country. And for most SEP’s, the holding of Annual General Meetings is a long forgotten activity.
For so long we have fearfully stood by and watched in amazement and questioned why Government was non-reactive to the apparent severe mis-management of its entities whose infrastructure was regarded among the best in Southern Africa as in the case of the Cold Storage Company abattoirs.
If no immediate action is taken, infrastructure and operations at the SEP’s will continue to deteriorate and sink thousands of long serving workers into abject poverty. At the end of the day it really is about how we serve our people who ultimately make up Zimbabwe.
In some areas like Hwange, the towns were built because of the existence of the once mining giant which has the capacity to employ in excess of 3 000 workers when running efficiently.
The mismanaged SEP’s must shoulder some of the blame for the unemployment scourge in the country. For example the CSC at full capacity can employ 2 000 workers at any given time including a yearly intake of artisans in the various disciplines from various colleges in the country. However, the company is not employing but is instead relying on natural wastage (death, retirement, resignation) to gladly rid itself of the aging workforce.
So without the resuscitation of SEP’s the realisation of Zim Asset and vibrancy of the Zimbabwean economy will never be fully realised. Not every Zimbabwean has the entrepreneurial skills hence the need to cater for this sector of employees who function better in a structured 9am to 5pm set-up
To this end, Government has an obligation to the nation to rid itself of non-productive SEP heads who remain stuck in the old ways and refuse to conform and instead dream of “once upon a time” or the “good old days” that no longer have a place in the sun of the current Zimbabwe.
Patience F Madambi is a public relations consultant
