happiness Chikwanha
THE $105 000 loan dispute pitting Vice President Dr Joice Mujuru’s mining venture, Great Zimbabwe Mining Circle Trust, and a Harare businesswoman the family is accused of swindling has thrown the spotlight on NMB Bank as to how the Mujuru family got to open a bank account using an unsigned notarial deed of trust.
Great Zimbabwe Mining Circle Trust is embroiled in a bitter row with a Harare businesswoman Ms Thokozani Ncube over $105 000 aanced to the family to finance their Trust.
VP Mujuru’s daughter Nyasha Noreen Nyorovai Mujuru and her other three trustees used the unsigned document to open a bank account with NMB in which Ms Ncube deposited the money. The family assured her that she would get back her money plus interest after a month, but this did not happen.
Each time Ms Ncube tried to engage the family to recover her money, she was being frustrated with trustees who had a propensity of invoking the VP’s name to deny the woman her dues.
Ms Ncube tried to get the VP to intervene without success as she sided with her daughter in the issue.
At the time the GZMCT account was opened with NMB, Mr James Mushore was the bank’s chief executive. He retired from the bank last month.
In interview yesterday, Mr Mushore could neither confirm nor deny that the Mujuru family used the unsigned document to open the bank account in which the loan was deposited.
He said he left the bank at the end of last month and has no access to the records for him to know what transpired.
“As a chief executive I would not know any accounts that would have been opened on a day-to-day basis,” he said. “There are certain procedures that are followed when a bank account is opened. I have no doubt that NMB followed account opening procedures.”
On whether the Mujuru family had vested interest in the NMB, Mr Mushore said the bank had over 3 500 shareholders and it was listed on the Zimbabwe and London stock exchanges.
“Anybody can buy shares from NMB,” said Mr Mushore, who had earlier on said he was not qualified to speak about NMB since he was no longer an employee of the bank.
“I am not aware of the Mujurus being shareholders. If they have bought shares in the bank they have made a good investment,” he said
GZMCT trustees are Nyasha, Dumisani Nyoni, Clive Madzikanda, and Valentine Garacho.
Sources close to the developments said what has raised concern in this case is that Ms Ncube is an ordinary person and the perpetrators are people of major influence, the VP’s daughter, who used her mother’s name to get money and refuse to pay it back.
Online Reporter