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NewsDay

AMH is an independent media house free from political ties or outside influence. We have four newspapers: The Zimbabwe Independent, a business weekly published every Friday, The Standard, a weekly published every Sunday, and Southern and NewsDay, our daily newspapers. Each has an online edition.

Stop moral bankruptcy in countrys leadership

Opinion & Analysis
Reports in our sister paper The Zimbabwe Independent: yesterday that Energy and Power Development minister Elton Mangoma came under fire from Cabinet ministers at a high level meeting over the leaking of what they termed confidential informationVIPs unpaid Zesa bills is testimony of moral bankruptcy in the countrys leadership. The ministers see nothing morally wrong […]

Reports in our sister paper The Zimbabwe Independent: yesterday that Energy and Power Development minister Elton Mangoma came under fire from Cabinet ministers at a high level meeting over the leaking of what they termed confidential informationVIPs unpaid Zesa bills is testimony of moral bankruptcy in the countrys leadership.

The ministers see nothing morally wrong with not paying their bills, but everything wrong with being exposed for what they are defaulters who owe the countrys struggling power utility huge monies.

They are defaulters by force because they use political clout to avoid paying bills and nobody dares switch them off.

What is irksome is that these people are not concerned with paying their bills; they are more concerned with sweeping their immoral behaviour under the carpet.

As leaders they should be leading by example to show the nation where our moral compass should be pointing to.

Cicero, the Roman statesman aptly noted that leaders should be a pattern to others, and then all will go well; for as the whole city is infected by the licentious passions and vices of great men, so it is likewise reformed by their moderation.

But our leaders give the wrong example and we cannot expect them to guide the economy to the shores of prosperity they do not have the moral compass to do so.

The philosopher Seneca noted: Noble examples stir us up to noble actions. Can we say this of our morally barren leaders whose major preoccupation seems to be plundering and covering up?

Mangoma whether he leaked the names of these shameless defaulters or not is not at fault, the truth is that the ministers are behaving like the proverbial antelope that hates not the one who sees it, but the one who alerts others to its presence.

The nation has been alerted to their high levels of immorality and hypocrisy. They expect Zesa to switch off the ordinary folk for paltry sums such as $100 while they want to get away with bills as high as $345 000. What do these people valuethe nation or their personal welfare?

What is clear is that these ministers, whom we think are our leaders, have no vestige of personal integrity and a person with no personal integrity cant be taken seriously as a leader. Can we honestly say: We trust our leaders even though they are cheats?

Wouldnt that be a contradiction in terms? What are these ministers trying to do? Are they trying to construct their own moral code based on immorality?

By raising hell for being exposed for using their political advantage to deliberately default in Zesa payments, the ministers are simply refusing to acknowledge moral responsibility as leaders. Acts 1:1 clearly states: A leader must acknowledge moral responsibility, both in his words and in his walk.

Ministers should take a leaf out of that wisdom. As a nation, we should just stop taking these morally bankrupt clowns seriously. The electorate should just show them the exit door in the next election.