Online Reporter
Fidelis Munyoro-Chief Court Reporter
THE trial of business partners Mike Chimombe and Moses Mpofu, accused of defrauding the state of more than US$7 million through the Presidential Goats Pass-On Scheme, saw the cross-examination of key State witness, Dr John Basera, yesterday.
Dr Basera was the Permanent Secretary for Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development at the time of the goat deal with Blackdeck Pvt Ltd, the company awarded the tender to supply goats.
Chimombe is denying he was involved in the deal and the two accused have separate defences. Under cross-examination by Chimombe’s lawyer, Professor Lovemore Madhuku, Dr Basera said he had no prior interaction with Chimombe during the bidding process or the signing of the contract between Blackdeck and the Ministry in November 2023.
Dr Basera did cite the presence of Chimombe during negotiations, meetings, and launches of the scheme, as well as the surname “Chimombe” on the contract, but that was signed by Tinashe Chimombe as a witness.
When pressed further, he said: “I did not sign the document. I doubt if the second accused (Mike Chimombe) signed. Of course, the surname was a witness, but the second accused did not sign.”
Asked to confirm whether Chimombe had any involvement in the tender process, Dr Basera said: “Certainly, there was no other connection, but he would accompany the Blackdeck representatives in the negotiations, and even at the launch of the programme in Chipinge, he was also present.”
He said he could not recall seeing Chimombe at the award of the tender. “As far as I still recall, he was not involved.”
When Prof Madhuku pressed for specifics on Chimombe’s role, Dr Basera reiterated that Chimombe was often seen in the company of Blackdeck representatives, including attending meetings with the ministry’s technical teams and the Chipinge launch.
“It was more spiritual and physical indeed and no signature at all,” he said.
Earlier in the trial, Advocate Tapson Dzvetero representing Mpofu concluded his cross-examination of Dr Basera by presenting several documents, including the contract, to show that civil legal procedures were available, such as termination and arbitration in cases of misconduct.
Adv Dzvetero also highlighted a letter from Blackdeck Livestock and Poultry Farming Pvt Ltd to the Ministry on April 21 2022, proposing a 25 percent price reduction contingent on timely payments to the company’s nostro account.
Despite this proposal, Blackdeck received Z$901 294 200 on April 22, 2022, as part of an approved US$12 million advance payment. However, there was no formal response to the letter.
Following the payment, Blackdeck engaged the Ministry on June 13, 2022, proposing to begin goat distribution in Mashonaland West.
On June 6, the Ministry had requested the supply of 500 goat bucks to Chipinge by “the middle of next week for a function to be officiated by His Excellency,” even as the contract faced scrutiny, according to another letter shown to Dr Basera.
Central to the case lies the question of whether the tender process was manipulated and whether payments were made to a fraudulent entity.
The accusations trace back to September 2021, when the Ministry invited bids to supply 632 001 goats under a scheme valued at US$87 757 168.
The defence contends that the Ministry’s procedural failures, including the failure to provide a 30 percent advance payment as stipulated, rendered the execution of the contract impossible.
However, the prosecution aims to prove that the accused exploited the process for personal gain.
The trial continues today before Justice Pisirayi Kwenda, with assessors Ms Margaret Chitsiga and regional magistrate Mr Temba Kuwana.
