Yeukai Karengezeka — Court Correspondent
Seven Harare City councillors, who constitute the Finance and Development Committee, allegedly connived in recommending that council employees, including themselves get 20 percent of all stands created in Harare, exposing the corruption that is allegedly taking place at the local authority.
The trial for Costa Mande (40), Gilbert Thamsanga Hadebe (51), Maxwell Dutuma (29), Loveness Gomba (46), Happymore Gotora (47), Ian Muteto Makone (73) and Stanley Manasi Manyenga (40) is being heard before Harare regional magistrate Mr Clever Tsikwa.
The councillors are charged with two counts of criminal abuse of duty as a public officers and alternatively corruptly concealing from a principal personal interest in a transaction.
The complainant in this case is the State represented by Mr Shepherd Chikomba.
Prosecutor Mr Tendai Tapi led evidence from Kennedy Chikandamina who is the council's Acting City Valuer and Estates Manager, who testified that the normal procedure for allocating stands was not followed in this case.
He stated that senior council officials and councillors were allocated stands without paying application fees and without following the waiting list.
He said the procedure for one to get a commercial or industrial stand is that one applies through his division where upon receipt, it is filed and one is supposed to pay the application fee of $30 or equivalent
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Regards senior council officials, he said he received an instruction through a memorandum dated 17 June 2022 from the town clerk directing that they be allocated stands.
He said among the applicants is Dr Prosper Chonzi who has not yet his paid application fees whilst councillors Tichaona Mhetu and Brian Matione paid after the report had been submitted to the council. It is alleged that on June 17, 2022 a Committee of Senior council officials chaired by Phakhamile Mabhena Moyo, the Acting Harare City Council Town Clerk then sitting with other council executives recommended that council employees be allocated 20% of all stands created in Harare.
The accused persons acting under the auspices of the Finance and Development Committee connived to unlawfully allocate themselves as members of the Finance and Development Committee and councillors as well as senior council officials some commercial or industrial stands.
The accused persons executed their plan in two meetings held on 14 November 2022 and 14 December 2022 respectively. The allegedly used this recommendation to unlawfully allocate stands to themselves and others and also used a waiver to gain possession of council stands and devised a plan to allocate stands to each other.
The plan involved councillors excusing themselves from meetings to allow their colleagues to allocate them stands, and then re-joining the meeting to allocate stands to their colleagues.
A total of 24 commercial and industrial stands were allegedly allocated to 12 councillors and 11 senior council officials, as well as one member of Parliament. Additionally, 35 stands were allocated to applicants in Glaudina, including two councillors and three employees.
The recommendations were adopted and passed unanimously by the council. The trial is continuing today.
