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The Harare City Council acting town planner was in court yesterday facing fresh charges of criminal abuse of duty over a residential stand in Greystone Park.
Samuel Nyabezi was not asked to plead when he appeared before Harare magistrate Stanford Mambanje.
He is being charged together with two other senior council officers, Addmore Nhekairo and Zvenyika Isiah Chawatama, who have already appeared in court on the same allegations.
The court heard that in 2018, the trio connived to corruptly sell stand 926 Greystone Township, which was zoned as a public open space, without following procedures of change of reservation.
Allegations are that on July 17 in 2018, Samuel Nyabeza forwarded layout plan number TPF/ER/08/18 for the stand for approval and the approval was turned down on the basis that the residential stand was reserved as a public open space and that no change of reservation had been done.
It is alleged that an application for change of reservation for the stand number was made, but on October 22, 2018, the Environmental Management Committee deferred discussion on the application indicating that they wanted to have a visit-in-loco at the area.
The State further alleges that on September 9, 2019, before approval of change of reservation by the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Nyabeza and his accomplices changed the stand and approved the plan that had been stood down.
It is alleged that on October 23, 2019, the trio sold the residential stand and issued an offer letter to Tinotenda Myambo knowing that the change of reservation hadn’t been done as required at law.
Kennedy Madekutsikwa appeared for the State.
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