Cde Matshiya
Munyaradzi Musiiwa Midlands Correspondent
Police are not remitting all the revenue they collect from traffic offences to Treasury but are retaining some of it for internal use, an official has said.
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Cde Melusi Matshiya, said this on the sidelines of a handover ceremony of refurbished classroom and administration blocks and teachers quarters at Mutya Primary School in Chirumanzu.
He said gone were the days when police would fail to attend to crime scenes or road traffic accidents scene on time because of unavailability of resources.
“Yes, we are not remitting all the money to Treasury. We are retaining some of the revenue we receive,” he said.
Last year, the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) Commissioner-General Gershem Pasi ruffled feathers when he told Parliament that the ZRP and Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara) should remit all the money they collect to Treasury, suggesting that the police were collecting between $3 million and $7 million at roadblocks monthly, money which did not find its way to Treasury at a time Government was financially hamstrung.
Cde Matshiya said police officers should be properly dressed when performing their duties.
“The money we are retaining is going towards purchasing reliable vehicles, uniforms and other resources so that they police our peaceful country,” he said.
Commenting on the recent demonstration by transport operators in Gweru and Bulawayo over alleged corruption by traffic policemen manning roadblocks, Cde Matshiya said police would not be held to ransom by commuter omnibus operators.
He said traffic officers had a constitutional role to play on the road adding that their presence was vital to save lives.
“Road users should expect to see traffic officers present on the roads. We have noted that the most vocal operators do not have the necessary papers. So they should make sure that their vehicles and drivers have the necessary documentation before they go on the road.”
Addressing teachers and parents gathered for the handover of the rehabilitated school buildings, Cde Matshiya said the Lotteries and Gaming Board had responded upon receiving the appeal for financial assistance to rehabilitate the school structures after heavy winds blew away roofs and destroyed the building.
“This type of empowerment is quite in harmony with Zim-Asset as it focuses towards the growth targets enunciated and projected for the education sector, set at 4.5 percent.
“The classroom and administration blocks, a teachers’ quarters roof plus the floors for three classrooms and two teachers’ quarters were replaced courtesy of the Lotteries and Gaming Fund,” he said.