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Lloyd Gumbo Senior Reporter
A task force in the Office of the President and Cabinet will co-ordinate and monitor operations of parastatals and local authorities to curb corruption and the awarding of mega-salaries to executives.
The Corporate Governance and Delivery Agency will ensure compliance with the Corporate Governance Framework and the National Code of Corporate Governance in Zimbabwe.

Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa told the National Assembly in a ministerial statement yesterday that Government sought to bring sanity to State-linked organisations.

The statement was on Corporate Governance and Remuneration Policy Framework for chief executive officers of parastatals, State enterprises and local authorities.

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Minister Chinamasa said the Cabinet Committee on State Enterprises and Parastatals Development was seized with dealing with the malaise of mega-salaries, outrageous allowances and shady procurement practices.

The committee will also oversee forensic audits of all concerned entities.

“In undertaking this important and urgent task, the Cabinet Committee on State Enterprises and Parastatals Development will endeavour to ensure that the process is objective, transparent, fair, impartial, non-political and strictly evidence-based,” he said.

“Put differently, the Committee will not superintend over a politicised witch-hunt against any individual or interest.”

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Minister Chinamasa said it was the executive’s mandate to bring sanity to the public sector, while Parliament’s role was playing the oversight role.

Cabinet, he said, was rationalising board appointments, management and performance, and chief executive officers’ recruitment.

“Board members (will) be selected on grounds of merit, based on a clearly defined capability matrix and skills mix, in areas such as legal, finance, marketing, audit, technical, human resources, strategic and economic planning,” said Minister Chinamasa.

“That a 50-50 gender representation and regional spread be factored into the selection of board members,” he added.

Ministers will be expected to clearly spell out board mandates.

Board members will be appointed on four-year renewable terms and will be required to declare their assets and sign a code of conduct to declare their interests.

“That no permanent secretary should be a member of a public enterprise board, but the ministers should appoint appropriately qualified and experienced persons from their ministries to sit through deliberations of the board and to report to the ministry the gist of the board’s deliberations,” was one of Cabinet’s recommendations, said Minister Chinamasa.

Boards will meet on a quarterly basis, while extraordinary board meetings are to be cleared by the relevant permanent secretary.

All board resolutions must be submitted to line ministers and signed off by board chairpersons, CEOs and corporate secretaries.

Annual general meetings will be attended by representatives from the Office of President and Cabinet, Treasury, the parent ministry, the Comptroller and Auditor-General and other stakeholder ministries.

The Corporate Governance and Delivery Agency will compile and maintain a databank of all potential board members from which ministers should pick nominations for Presidential approval.

Ministries will be expected to meet full boards under their jurisdiction at least twice a year.

The other Cabinet resolutions are: “That all decisions on the conditions of service of the CEO must be made by a resolution from a properly constituted board meeting.

“That all external audit reports must be submitted by the auditors directly to the minister, in addition to the submission made to the board.

“That no person shall sit on more than two boards of a public enterprise. Membership of a board of a public enterprise in an ex-officio capacity is not considered as relevant for purposes of this limitation.

“That the Office of the President and Cabinet should at an appropriate time, gazette all current appointments to the boards and their tenure of office and should regularly through the Gazette, update such information.”

Every board will be expected to have separately constituted audit, finance, human resources and remuneration committees.

On appointments and performance of CEOs, Cabinet resolved that the board and the minister must agree on specifications for the position and proceed to invite – through a media advertisement – people to fill the post.

“Interviews will then be conducted by the board with the assistance of professional human resource consultants,” said Minister Chinamasa.

“The board will then submit three recommended appointees for the CEO position to the minister in order of priority, who will then submit his recommended candidate to His Excellency, the President for his approval.

“That the line minister should insist on getting documentary evidence of compliance by Boards with the procedure for the appointment of a CEO.

“The CEO and other senior management in State Enterprises, Parastatals and Heads of Local authorities be put on performance contracts.”

The renewable four-year contracts should be entered into at the point of engagement and clearly spell out what a CEO is entitled to as severance package under the different circumstances of termination of service.

Zanu-PF MP for Buhera South, Cde Joseph Chinotimba, said Government must come up with mechanisms of prosecuting corrupt officicials and those who abused their offices.

Chegutu West legislator Cde Dexter Nduna (Zanu-PF) asked what action Government was taking on CEOs who had already served for many years.

Minister Chinamasa said they would come up with a position when the Ministerial Committee meets next Monday.

He said Government would not rush to prosecute people accused of graft and abuse of office, and would first gather sufficient evidence to commence criminal proceedings.

MDC-T MP for Binga North Mr Prince Dube said Government should be decisive to restore confidence in the administration.