SUSPENDED Gweru town clerk Elizabeth Gwatipedza is in the
eye of a storm after an audit showed that she bought herself a mobile phone and
a laptop for $150 000 using council funds.
Gwatipedza was suspended last year and is also facing
disciplinary action over several allegations of criminal abuse of office.
According to the audit, in September 2019, she bought a
latest premium laptop with its operating system for $107 200 and a Huawei
mobile phone valued at
$42 000 using the council’s funds despite having bought
another state-of-the-art laptop the previous year.
Gwatipedza allegedly acquired the items without the advice
of the acting procurement manager, one Muumbe, who was reportedly well-versed
with procurement regulations.
The audit also showed that Gwatipedza inflated the figures
on the procurement of 5 000-litre and 10 000-litre water tanks.
It is alleged that she facilitated the procurement of a 5
000-litre water tank for $52 000 and a
10 000-litre one for $230 575, a difference of $180 000.
Gwatipedza is accused of violating the procurement
procedures through direct procurement instead of inviting bids.
According to the audit, the acting procurement manager Muumbe
allegedly accepted a letter seeking a top-up of $6 320 to pay for a suspicious
company which had been paid earlier with the documents not dated.
It is alleged the finance department proceeded to make the
payment without questioning the identity of that company.
Gwatipedza is also accused of purchasing 18 000 litres of
diesel from PetroTrade for $131 350 on July 18 last year and PetroTrade
delivered only 4 965 litres as at August 18, 2019 due to the shortage of trucks
to carry the fuel.
It is alleged the council was taxed by PetroTrade on the
price variation of the commodity and the council ended up losing
$221 188 for the uncollected diesel.
Gwatipedza is also accused of buying a four-plate stove and
leather sofas at TN Harlequin Luxaire company in December 2017 for US$4 173
using council funds and again on July 16 last year, she bought another pair of
sofas worth $20 999 also using council funds.
The suspended Gweru town clerk had not been attending her
disciplinary hearings until recently.
She also faces a disciplinary charge of not following
procurement procedure after she acquired a Toyota Land Cruiser Prado outside
the Cabinet approval limit.
According to the allegations, Gweru council sought Cabinet
approval to purchase a Toyota Land Cruiser Prado for US$135 000.
After the Cabinet approval had been sought, Gwatipedza then
influenced chamber secretary Vakai Chikwekwe and acting finance director, one O
Masimba to pay an upward variation of the vehicle of US$176 357 to the supplier
of the vehicle outside Cabinet authority.
It is alleged Gwatipedza was advised by the chamber
secretary not to make an upward variation and stick to the authorised figure,
but she went on to sign for an upward variation.
She is also accused of ordering a council driver to
chauffeur her daughter to Chinhoyi University of Technology using council
vehicle and fuel, where she was graduating.
The issue only came to light when the driver approached the
finance director for travel and subsistence allowances.
Gwatipedza is also accused of contracting a garbage
collector, Ndabezihle Ncube, without following due process.
It is also alleged council paid a total US$92 000 for a
blackhoe loader after she misrepresented that it was new. Newsday
0 comments:
Post a Comment