Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican President Daniel Chapo believes that the fight against corruption can only be won if the country focuses on strengthening its institutions, making them capable of holding accountable those responsible for the misappropriation of state funds.
According to the President, who was speaking in Maputo on Tuesday, at the closure of a two day National Conference on Fighting Corruption, corruption affects everyone, “and only Mozambicans themselves can eradicate it.”
“Over the past few months, the government has given clear signals that the time of impunity is over”, he declared. Officials must live from their wages, and not by extracting funds from the public treasury.
Chapo said that all social strata, including the private sector, civil society, and the media, must be involved in the fight against corruption.
“As long as we remain together, there will be no room for the culture of corruption as a way of living. I’m convinced that, in coordination with institutions dedicated to fighting corruption, we can end impunity at all levels. This is indeed year zero for preventing and combating corruption”, he said.
“We must all remain committed to improving the quality of life and well-being of Mozambican families, reducing social inequalities, which involve fighting corruption and poverty. We must share experiences, learn from best practices, and consolidate Mozambique’s credibility within the international community”, he said.
“Corruption knows no borders and combating it requires solidarity and international cooperation’, he added.
However, the first step against corruption must start from within as the current Agriculture Minister, Roberto Albino, was involved in controversial public tender in which a company related to him, Future Technologies of Mozambique, was awarded a contract budgeted at 130 million meticais (about two million US dollars, at the current exchange rate) by the country’s Cotton and Oilseeds Institute (IAOM).
The contract, which was for the development of a digital platform for the cotton and oilseed value chains, was later rejected by the Administrative Tribunal (AT), the body responsible for checking the legality of Mozambican public expenditure, “after serious flaws were identified in the award process.”
The Chemba District Attorney’s Office, in the central province of Sofala, has accused the same minister of illegally ordering the company Ecofarm to log 18 cubic meters of timber from 50 hectares of Albino’s 500-hectare concession.
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