The
dispute
surfaced
during
a
meeting
at
City
Hall
on
Monday,
where
officials
acknowledged
delays
in
signing
the
pledges
after
councillors
demanded
clearer
explanations
and
more
comprehensive
engagement
before
appending
their
signatures.
Bulawayo
council’s
senior
management
signed
the
integrity
pledges,
while
councillors
and
officials
from
Gwanda
Municipality
and
Plumtree
Town
Council
also
appended
their
signatures,
leaving
Bulawayo
councillors
among
those
yet
to
comply.
Ward
22
councillor
Bruce
Moyo
told
the
meeting
that
the
process
had
eroded
confidence
in
the
fairness
of
anti-corruption
efforts.
“When
it
comes
to
the
integrity
pledge
we
have
lost
hope
and
confidence
in
this
situation.
It
seems
those
who
are
considered
big
are
bigger
than
the
law,
which
is
something
your
commission
needs
to
address,”
he
said.
Ward
10
councillor
Khalazani
Ndlovu
said
the
time
allocated
to
study
the
pledge
was
unreasonable.
“The
short
time
you
have
given
us
to
read
something
we
do
not
understand
is
unreasonable.
At
least
you
should
have
given
us
a
day
or
two.
Right
now
we
feel
like
we
are
being
forced
to
sign
this
pledge,”
he
said.
Ward
9
councillor
Donaldson
Mabutho
argued
that
councillors
required
structured
training
before
committing
themselves.
“As
policy
makers
we
have
to
understand
what
we
are
signing.
The
major
reason
why
you’re
here
is
to
educate
us
on
how
to
prevent
corruption.
We
believe
we
need
a
proper
workshop,”
he
said.
David
Coltart,
the
mayor
of
Bulawayo,
backed
the
calls
for
more
time,
saying
even
senior
officials
were
unclear
about
the
contents
of
the
document.
“I
don’t
know
what
I
am
signing
myself,
whether
the
mistake
lies
with
ZAC
or
our
own
management.
These
points
are
valid.
If
we
talk
about
ethics,
part
of
ethics
is
respect
and
allowing
people
to
read,”
he
said.
ZACC
senior
compliance
officer
Kudzaishe
Kajese
urged
councillors
to
support
anti-corruption
initiatives,
arguing
that
the
pledge
reflected
commitments
they
had
already
made
to
voters.
“We
should
not
resist
when
we
are
fighting
corruption.
This
is
our
only
Zimbabwe
and
we
are
the
councillors
and
senators
and
we
represent
our
people,”
he
said.
The
integrity
pledges
form
part
of
ZACC’s
broader
strategy
to
promote
ethical
conduct
among
public
officials.