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Freedom Mupanedemo and Prosper Dembedza
Three Zvishavane Town Council top officials were jailed yesterday for an effective two years each for abuse of office and corruption over the award of a construction contract.
Town secretary Tinomuda Mukutu (53), housing director Nhlanhla Ngwenya (44) and town engineer Dominic Mapwashike (44) had pleaded not guilty, but Gweru Provincial Magistrate Mrs Miriam Banda convicted them due to overwhelming evidence.
Prosecutor Mr Frederick Macheza said on May 23, 2016, Zvishavane Town Council entered into a partnership agreement with Monitor Enterprises trading as JM Construction, for the servicing of 27 central business district extension stands, a contract valued at US$2 772 258,31.
JM Construction won the tender flighted by the town council, but the two-year deadline lapsed before completion of agreed works, resulting in the termination of the agreement by the council on October 1, 2018.
When the agreement was terminated, the council was supposed to put the remainder of the project back to tender, but on December 17, 2019, the three officials hand-picked JM Construction to continue with the contract after clandestine negotiations.
They signed the new contract with new conditions without going through the tender process as required by law and without any authority from Zvishavane Town Council.
In another court case involving another council, the trial of two Chitungwiza municipality officials and a councillor on charges of criminal abuse of office opened on Tuesday.
Works manager Emmanuel Mushata (45), housing administrator Alex Mukwewa (45), and ward 14 councillor Chengetai Nyagondo (49) pleaded not guilty.
The State, led by Mr Tafara Chirambira, called its witness Richard Manowa, who told the court that the trio had no power to alter the town plan.
It is the State’s case that in November 2019, Mushata, Mukwewa and Nyagondo connived to create a stand on an earth road.
The three created the residential stand without following the provisions of the Chitungwiza Municipality Housing Policy for the stand and named it stand number 20884.
The stand was situated in the midst of a road in Zengeza 4 and measuring 476 square metres.
It is alleged that Mushata crafted a layout plan and approved it. The layout plan shall be produced as an exhibit.
He then gave the layout plan to Mukwewa who then issued an offer letter to Nyagondo dated November 19, 2019.
The court heard that Nyagondo, a councillor and a policy formulator, accepted the offer and the letter shall be produced as an exhibit.
On December 16, 2019 Mushata indicated that stand number 20884 existed in the Chitungwiza planning register when in fact it did not exist, but a lease was signed between Chitungwiza Municipality and Nyagondo.
Disgruntled residents around the area in Zengeza 4 made a complaint against the three to the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works for creating a stand in the middle of a road.
Ronald Chimowa and his team from the Ministry’s Department of spatial and physical planning department conducted a site visit to stand number 20884 and ordered the council to issue a stop development order to Nyagondo.
The court heard that by creating the residential stand in the middle of a road, the trio acted contrary to or inconsistent with their duties as public officers.
There was no council resolution showing favour to Nyagondo and disfavour to residents who were deprived of the road.
Peter Tanyanyiwa
Online Reporter