The ManicaPost
OVER the past few years, some rogue law enforcement agents have been making headlines for the wrong reasons.
Cases of corruption have been reported across the country and addressing police corruption is essential in maintaining public order and the rule of law.
Since the powers entrusted to law enforcement officers can be easily manipulated for private gain, the act needs to be nipped in the bud.
Police corruption is a form of misconduct whereby law enforcement agents break their contractual obligations and abuse their powers for personal gain.
If left unchecked, this type of corruption results in public mistrust and gross violation of human rights. A corrupt police force is bad for the economy as it also erodes investor confidence.
Corruption by police officers can take many forms.
The most common act of corruption is when a police officer demands or receives payment for criminal offences to overlook the crime.
However, when police officers receive free ‘drinks’ and other gratuities just because they are police officers, this is also a form of corruption as it influences the way they conduct their duties.
Police corruption badly affects society socially, politically and economically.
A corrupt police force creates distrust in society and this widens the rift between cops and civilians.
When this happens, policing becomes extremely difficult as public participation in law enforcement becomes very low.
Elsewhere in this edition we carry a refreshing story in which the Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Minister Kazembe Kazembe reveals Government’s plans to monitor all police roadblocks through a computerised system.
This grand plan will eradicate corruption as the officers manning the roadblocks will be monitored from the office.
As Minister Kazembe rightly notes, this integrated system will promote smart policing.
“When fully implemented, the system will curb corruption.
“We will also have a computerised crime and traffic management system to police the police,” he said.
This is a worthwhile initiative that needs to be implemented as soon as yesterday.
Despite the numerous roadblocks that are mounted on the country’s highways, pirate taxis are operating in broad day light at a time when only Zupco buses are supposed to be on the roads as the country fights Covid-19.
One wonders how all those illegal operators are passing through all the roadblocks with no hassles.
The Zimbabwe Republic Police has great policing initiatives but these good models are being derailed by rampant corruption.
This also explains the rampant smuggling of second hand clothes, alcohol and marijuana along the porous Mozambican boarder.
We recently published a disturbing story in which police detectives who had attended an accident scene failed to attend to rescue the trapped and injured driver as they had been bribed by the driver of the truck involved.
Instead of attending to the trapped driver, the police officers prioritised removing smuggled second hand clothes from the scene.
The driver in question later died at hospital as he received help too late.
We therefore hope that the new computerised system will come along with body cameras that will record everything during police operations. The use of technology will definitely go a long way in curbing corruption in real time.
