By Tatenda Dewa | Harare Bureau |
Higher and Tertiary Education minister, Jonathan Moyo, on Thursday used a graduation ceremony at Madziwa Teachers’ College in Mashonaland Central to claim that he funded projects of national interest with money illegally obtained from the Zimbabwe Manpower Development Fund (ZIMDEF).
He told his critics to back off and declared that he was proud of what he did.
The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) says it has completed a docket against Moyo who they want prosecuted for heading the looting of more than $400, 000 that it says was diverted to personal use.
Moyo, however, said at the graduation ceremony that he used the money to fund President Robert Mugabe’s birthday celebrations, the pro-Zanu PF Zimbabwe Youth Council and a march to honour the 92-year-old leader.
“I wish to place on record that I do not consider public programmes such as the 21st February Movement, Zimbabwe Youth Council, million-man march in solidarity with President (Robert) Mugabe as Head of State and Government or veterans of the liberation war as partisan or political in the narrow sense of the term.
“These are initiatives that define and give content or substance to our nationhood. Being able to enable the support for such public programmes, as part of ZIMDEF’ss corporate social responsibility is, for me, a matter of national pride.
“I’m proud of it… It is my considered judgment that dynamic, effective and sustainable human capital development is possible only if it is anchored in public programmes like these I mentioned,” he said.
Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa this week told lawmakers that it was not government policy for Moyo to divert money from ZIMDEF to other uses.
There is no law or regulation that blesses ZIMDEF with the discretion to use money on the events that he listed.
The 21’st February Movement that celebrates Mugabe’s birthday is not a national but Zanu PF event, and the same goes for the war veterans’ meeting he also funded.
There is a war veterans’ ministry whose mandate is to take care of the projects relating to the ex-combatants.
The war veterans he funded were deemed an illegal grouping by Zimbabwe’s senior courts and comprise members of a Zanu PF faction now known as Generation 40 (G40).
In addition, the Zimbabwe Youth Council is housed under the ministry of Youth Empowerment and is not supposed to benefit from ZIMDEF funds that are meant to develop tertiary students’ skills.
The Million Man March was a Zanu PF event that was purportedly organised to show support for Mugabe as war veterans increasingly called on the president to step down for Emmerson Mnangagwa who leads a rival camp.
Moyo accused his political enemies of working with ZACC to hound him out.
“It’s one thing for people to disagree with or not like my choices, but quite another for them to label the choices unusual, illegal or corrupt, simply because my choices do not accord with their political agenda.
“I object to that in the strongest possible terms and I will fight to the bitter end to be left alone to fully discharge my responsibilities as given to me by my appointing authority. Please, leave me alone!
“The idea that some powerful people want to capture some institutions and to use those institutions to derail and tarnish good work will be resisted without let or hindrance,” added Moyo. Nehanda Radio
