Zimbabwe anti-graft commission suspends 19 officers on corruption allegations

Zimbabwe’s anti corruption commision has suspended 19 of its investigators for alleged graft, insubordination and revealing the organisation’s secrets.

The officers have been suspended for three months on full salary pending investigations into their alleged misconduct.

The 19 officials are part of 26 others who dragged the commission to court demanding their benefits which amount to over $1.5 million.

The other six investigating officers who distanced themselves from the labour case were spared from suspension.

The 19 denied the allegations but accused their bosses of blocking investigations into high-profile cases according the Herald reports.

According to local media in Zimbabwe, the accused have also been barred from leaving Zimbabwe’s without the commission’s permission and also not to interfere with the investigations.

Zimbabwe is the 150 least corrupt nation out of 175 countries, according to the 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index reported by Transparency International.

Corruption Rank in Zimbabwe averaged 117.89 from 1998 until 2015, reaching an all time high of 166 in 2008 and a record low of 43 in 1998.