
Sources said the Central Intelligence Organisation, which
compiled many reports on Chombo’s alleged corruption, had forwarded the documents
to police for investigation.
Chombo was arrested last week after being dumped at his
house by the military which seized him as part of Operation Restore Legacy
which saw soldiers storming some ministers’ houses and confining former
President Robert Mugabe to his Blue Roof house.
He has appeared in court twice facing corruption charges
and has been remanded in custody to December 8.
Sources said the police were investigating various
allegations laid against Chombo over the years including those which the
authorities deliberately turned a blind eye to, because of his close relations
with Mugabe.
“At one time a dossier was prepared to and handed to Mugabe
by the CIO for actioning but instead the president went on to appoint Chombo as
Home Affairs minister. This was seen as a clear message that he was
untouchable.”
During the inclusive government era, former Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai, also urged Mugabe to allow Chombo to be investigated for
corruption allegations but Mugabe declined.
Investigations during the inclusive government era into the
US$80 million Airport Road construction saga, Harare city councillors uncovered
evidence that a controversial Estonian company, Augur, was being used as a
conduit to fleece the municipality of millions of dollars and vast tracts of
prime land.
Chombo, senior council employees and a caretaker commission
which ran council affairs in 2008 were implicated. Copies of the council report
compiled after the investigation were sent to Tsvangirai and parliament for
further investigation. Council also threatened to approach the Anti-Corruption
Commission and police.
The case against Chombo was strengthened when
investigations revealed that a company owned by Chombo, Harvest Net
Investments, shared the same address as Augur at 62 Quorn Avenue, Mt Pleasant,
Harare.
The Airport Road deal was signed in 2008 and the project
should have been completed in 2010 but missed targets due to abuse of funds.
The project was eventually completed in 2014.
Chombo is also accused of fraudulently acquiring stand
number 61 of Helensvale (also known as stand 61 of Glenlorne) which measures
193 716 square metres and another piece of council land, subdivision K of
Nthaba, which he sold to a third party without paying for it.
Documents seen by this newspaper show that stand 61 was
reserved for recreational purposes and it was not supposed to be sold by the
city council.
“On October 4 1990 a full council meeting resolved to
subdivide stand 61 and sell it to people on the housing waiting list as
serviced stands,” reads part of the document.
“In June 1994 the decision to subdivide the stand 61 of
Helensvale was rescinded after objection from the residents of Budleigh Park,”
reads part of the report presented to the Serious Fraud division of the
Criminal Investigation Department (CID) under case number IR 0407725 by the
then acting mayor Charity Bango.
The documents also show that several applications by
companies and individuals who wanted to buy the land were turned down, citing
the resolution of the council pertaining to the use of that particular piece of
land.
Apart from Airport Road, other projects under Augur
included the Pomona Business Complex and Bluffhill Development which, according
to the Harare City Council, were approved in violation of the Regional Town and
Country Planning Act of 1996. It has now emerged that the City of Harare’s
Highlands District Office had in 2012 called for an investigation into the
construction of a multi-million-dollar commercial business complex in Pomona.
According to a letter to the urban planning director
Psychology Chiwanga by the Highlands District Office on April 26 2012, Chombo gave
the go-ahead for the complex to be built without council approval.
In the letter, the district manager said the construction
of the business complex was not above board.
“Subsequent to a site visit made on 23/03/2012, a recent
follow-up site visit on the 17th of April 2012 revealed that the Chinese
developers are constructing a commercial building which I am informed
accommodates CBZ Bank, etc, on a stand zoned residential according to
Borrowdale Local Development Plan Number 32,” reads part of the letter.
In another case, ER-09/2011, Chombo is said to have sold
council land to a third party without paying for it.
Documents reveal that on June 25 2004 the secretary for the
Ministry of Local Government and National Housing, only identified as Simon Pazvakawambwa,
wrote to the city valuer and estates manager, identified as Fransisco,
requesting that subdivision K of Nthaba Glenlorne be transferred to Chombo.
“The above stand was allocated to Dr. I.M.C Chombo in
1995,” reads part of the letter dated June 25 2004.
On September 19 2005, Pazvakawambwa wrote another later to
the city valuer giving details to effect the land transfer however contrary to
his earlier letter where he alleged the land was allocated to Chombo in 1995 he
stated that the land was bought for “Z$6301 on January 1 1997.”
After acquiring the land, Chombo went on to sell the stand
to Alois Ndziva Chimeri on September 5 2003 “for Z$250 000 000 and the purchase
price was paid in full.”
Questions have also been raised over Chombo’s wealth. In
their divorce papers, Marian claimed she and Chombo owned businesses, farms,
homes and residential stands in Harare’s leafy suburbs of Mt Pleasant,
Alexandra Park, Greendale, Borrowdale and other towns around the country,
luxury cars and vast tracts of land. zimbabwe independent
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