The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) has vehemently criticised the government for allegedly misappropriating taxpayers’ money through fraudulent infrastructure development projects.
This condemnation follows comments from Transport and Infrastructure Development Minister Felix Mhona, who was quoted as saying that over US$1.7 billion was allocated for road rehabilitation projects ahead of the recently concluded Southern African Development Community (SADC) Summit in Harare.
In a statement released on Sunday, September 1, 2024, ARTUZ asserted that the staggering US$1.7 billion figure exposes an ongoing scheme of looting disguised as infrastructure development.
The union said that funds siphoned off through these fictitious projects should instead be directed toward providing civil servants with a living wage and addressing other critical sectors in need of financial support. Below is the statement:
The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe, ARTUZ has learnt with shock and anger that the government claims to have spent USD 1.7 billion on refurbishing roads ahead of the Southern African Development Community, SADC conference summit held from 16 to 18 August in Harare.
The figure exposes an ongoing looting scheme disguised in the name of infrastructure development. The work that was done and the astronomical figure announced by Mhona do not tally.
The Union calls for the immediate halting of any infrastructure development project. The Auditor General’s office should engage in an audit of the projects before they are allowed to resume.
The Union further calls upon the relevant Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee to summon Minister Mhona to investigate how the USD 1.7 billion was spent.
The Union will not hesitate to declare ongoing infrastructure projects as robbery scenes where Citizen arrests may be effected.
The money being looted through these fake projects should be deployed to paying hard-working Civil Servants a living wage among other Critical sectors in need of funding.
ARTUZ condemns the overfunding of projects in Harare at the expense of other regions. Devolution of governance should become a reality as a matter of urgency. Harare is not Zimbabwe.
The Union will declare job actions ahead of school opening. It is apparent that government has capacity to pay a living wage.
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