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Yeukai Karengezeka-Court Correspondent
Four Harare City Council officials facing allegations of awarding a local company Juluka Endo Joint Venture a tender worth US$9 244 328 for street lighting without following proper procedures were yesterday granted US$500 bail each.
Never Murerwa (62), Jabulani Mukomazi (44), Denford Zhungu (69) and Tawanda Mutenhabundo (29) are facing criminal abuse of office charges and they appeared before Harare magistrate, Mrs Marehwanazvo Gofa.
In granting the quartet bail, the magistrate said the court considered that their co-accused and suspended Harare town clerk, Hosiah Chisango and Artkins Mandaza were out on bail.
They were remanded to November 22. The records of the four have been merged with those of Chisango and Mandaza so the trial will have six accused from the municipality.
Murerwa is the supply chain manager and Mukomazi is a principal buyer in the City of Harare procurement management unit.
Zhungu is a principal accountant and Mutenhabundo an engineering technician.
They were members of the tender evaluation committee when the crime was allegedly committed.
The tender was for the refurbishment of streetlights.
Juluka Endo Joint Venture is owned by businessman Moses Mpofu, who, along with business associate Mike Chimombe, is in remand prison awaiting trial on allegations of defrauding the Government of over US$7 million meant for the Presidential Goat Scheme.
It is the State’s case that in January this year, the City of Harare embarked on the rehabilitation of street lighting along Harare roads.
On January 29, the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (PRAZ) granted a few specific exemptions to facilitate the expeditious completion of key projects in time for the SADC summit. On March 15, an invitation to tender for street light repairs was published in the Government Gazette and it was listed on Procurement Regulatory Authority portal on March 19.
The court heard that 11 companies responded to the tender invitation but Juluka Endo Joint Venture was disqualified after failing to meet the tender requirements.
However, the accused persons, working together went to unlawfully award the tender of the remaining lots to Juluka Endo Joint Venture, disregarding the general procurement provisions which required the process to be done through a competitive bidding process.
The State further alleged that the accused disregarded an earlier decision to disqualify Juluka Endo Joint Venture for having failed to meet the bid requirements.
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