The arrest of former Prosecutor General, Johannes Tomana is a wakeup call to all high ranking officials that there are no sacred cows in the justice delivery system, an anti-corruption watchdog has said.
Transparency International Zimbabwe (TIZ), a local organization dedicated to promoting transparency and ending corruption, said Tomana’s arrest serves as a warning to prominent figures in the country that justice is still being served regardless of one’s status.
Addressing journalists at a press conference, TIZ Chairperson, Loughty Dube said their organization is chuffed by the arrest of the former Attorney General and said his organization was the first to publish a damning report on the scandals surrounding the controversial Attorney.
“Tomana’s arrest is a great victory for TIZ that finally and for the first time the authorities are living up to their statutory and constitutional mandate by pursuing the investigation of a prominent public official such as the former AG.
“Whatever the outcome of this tribunal, this is a seminal case that not only vindicates the work of TIZ as an anti-corruption watchdog but also will set precedence that says there are no sacred cows,” said Dube.
He added that the so called bigwigs with all their political protection, networks and financial resources to circumvent justice are subject to the rule of law.
Dube said, “Six years ago TIZ published a foundational evidence dossier whose analysis noted the controversy surrounding the appointment of Johannes Tomana as AG. It noted that it was mired in acrimony as there was contention over his suitability even then.
“During his tenure as AG, he was accused of being partisan in the manner in which he discharged his duties, we compiled evidence that demonstrated clearly that as AG, Tomana violated the terms of his office to assist certain individuals, some of whom were his acquaintances to escape criminal liability,”he said.
The TIZ dossier points out that there was plenty anecdotal evidence from police and prosecutors consulted, which points out there was rampant abuse of power by the AG’s office on numerous other cases that were not in the public domain suggesting that further forensic investigations needed to be conducted upon receipt of the dossier.
Tomana has since been relieved of his duties as Prosecutor General to allow investigations into numerous cases he is charged with.
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