ENERGY minister Samuel Undenge was yesterday grilled by
legislators over the $5 million controversially advanced to businessman,
Wicknell Chivayo, whose company, Intratek Zimbabwe was awarded the
multi-million dollar Gwanda solar project under equally contentious
circumstances.
The project awarded in 2016 has not registered much
progress despite Chivayo reportedly receiving the down payment allegedly in his
personal account.
The matter was raised by Norton MP Temba Mliswa during the
on-going 2018 budget seminar in Victoria Falls just after Undenge’s
presentation on energy.
“The ministry released $5 million that was given to Chivayo
and we are trying to vote for a new budget. But it becomes difficult to
deliberate on a new budget when there are some monies that are not accounted
for,” he charged.
“We need to know why he was given the money and nothing has
been happening. As we speak, another consultancy company has taken over which
shows that there was a scam because he has failed. So that money must be
refunded to government. There are other allegations that part of the money was
deposited to your account so we need receipts pertaining to all these issues
before we pass the budget. Monies are being misappropriated so you need to
account first before we approve.”
Undenge agreed disbursing the money, but could not explain
how it was used.
“So for you to be clean, you need to show us everything and
all the requisitions required together with what went to your account and
further explain why it was so,” another MP said in response to Undenge.
This prompted Speaker of the National Assembly, Jacob
Mudenda, to suggest setting up a committee to investigate the allegations.
“We will assign a committee that will investigate the
matter. We can’t pursue the matter and call for invoices that are against the
standing order. The minister will give the investigation team all the documents
to be fully distilled after the findings and that will be our point of
departure,” he said after the matter had raised a lot of dust from other
legislators.
Although the project is located in Spitzkop suburb,
Intratek abandoned the site a few months after workers removed all earth-moving
equipment from the site.
The $5 million released to Chivayo without a bond and
reportedly against the advice of Zesa management, was supposed to cover
feasibility studies, topographical survey, boreholes, clearance of site, the
geo-technical survey, fencing of the site, way leaves and administrative
structures.
Only feasibility studies, borehole siting surveys and the
topographical survey have been done. Newsday
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