A 28-year-old Memory Makura, registered nurse who works for the Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals appeared in court on charges that she asked student nurses who had failed their exams for bribes in exchange for improved performance.
Memory Makura appeared before Mrs. Marehwanazvo Gofa, the Harare magistrate, and was given a $200 US bond. In this case, Nisbert Mukungureyi and Wellington Zunga are the complainants.
Makura and the complainants were enrolled in a general nursing course at Sally Mugabe Central Hospital School of Nursing in May 2020, according to court documents. April 2023 saw them take their final exams.
When the results were announced in May 2023, Makura had passed while Zunga and Mukungureyi had failed. The Sally Mugabe Central Hospital School of Nursing then readmitted them so they could retake their exams on August 9, 2023.
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Makura allegedly approached the complainants and made an offer to alter their exam scores prior to the official release of the results. Zunga and Mukungureyi chose to retake their tests in spite of the offer.
Sally Mugabe Central Hospital School of Nursing informed the complainants in September of the same year that they had failed once more and would be expelled from the nursing program as a result. But the Ministry of Health and Child Care stepped in and enrolled them in a six-month training program at Gwanda Multi-disciplinary School.
Makura allegedly told them during exam prep that the reason they kept failing was because they wouldn’t provide money to the Nurses Council of Zimbabwe (NCZ). Makura said that for a charge of US$500 each unsuccessful exam paper, her uncle at the NCZ could change their exam results. She said she could put them in touch with her uncle.
When Gwanda Multi-disciplinary School received a complaint against Makura, both the school and NCZ encouraged the complainants to speak with Makura in order to obtain proof. Following through, Zunga and Mukungureyi took the exam in March of this year.
