Members of Parliament have called on the government to provide the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) with adequate resources to ensure the timely completion of court cases.
This call comes in response to a report highlighting the NPA’s challenges in effectively executing its duties.
The report revealed that the NPA completed only 68% of its cases, a significant concern.
Among the challenges cited were understaffing, lack of funding, inadequate ICT equipment, and insufficient resources for training recruited personnel.
Zanu-PF legislator Ozias Bvute emphasised the need to address these shortcomings to enhance the NPA’s performance.
He pointed out that economic crimes, in particular, were not being disposed of at a satisfactory rate, with a clearance rate of only 34%. He urged the government to expedite the handling of such cases.
Bvute also highlighted the lack of internet connectivity in several NPA offices, a crucial tool for efficient operations.
“Internet connectivity is now considered a basic human right and it is impossible to do business without them. I would, therefore, encourage the Ministry of Finance or the relevant authorities to try and assist in ensuring that they do their work in a manner that allows for them to be efficient,” said Bvute.
Furthermore, Bvute underscored the issue of understaffing, with 178 vacancies hindering the NPA’s capacity. He called for immediate recruitment measures to fill these vacancies.
Gwanda South MP Omphile Marupi echoed Bvute’s concerns regarding ICT resources and electronic gadgets. He proposed implementing an inventory system to safeguard these valuable assets.
“We are seeing reports talking of purchasing properties, but we do not have an account and we do not have a record of what was purchased and where these things are so when we are doing an audit and when we are to lobby for resources to be given to these departments, we get to know what was purchased and what is needed at a particular time,” he said.
