CCC councillors in Harare — working in cahoots with top council officials and their MDC Alliance counterparts — are involved in a sickening land scam in which they buy commercial and industrial stands for as little as US$60 and resell them at more than US$120 000.
Documents gleaned by The Herald show that the council’s
Mayor Jacob Mafume and several councillors from the corruption-prone opposition
CCC and MDC, who include Messrs Denford Ngadziore, Stanley Manyenga, Adonia
Shoko and Jason Kautsa have received land in parts of Harare.
Also involved in the land scam are councillors Happymore
Gotora, Joseph Kunashe, Keith Charumbira, Brian Matione, Costa Mande, Maxwell
Dutuma, Midia Mudariki, Tichaona Mhetu, Runyowa Chihoma and Gaudencia
Marera.
According to the dossier, Ward 5 Belvedere Councillor
Mudariki and a council official Francis Mukanhairi each got a 220 square-metre
commercial stand in Budiriro for US$66 with an option of paying using local
currency at the prevailing equivalent rate.
In Cleveland Industrial area, Ngadziore, who was arrested
last week on land scams, got 6 692sqm for US$1 000, Gotora paid $620 for 5
164sqm, while Kautsa got 3 834 sqm for US$575.
In Aspindale, councillor Mande got a 7 327 square-metre
stand for US$1 100 or equivalent at the prevailing interbank rate while Mhetu
is paying US$1 218 for an 8 117 sqm stand. On the other hand, Matione paid
US$925 for a 6 163sqm stand.
In the same area, Kunashe got a 6 929sqm for US$1 040,
Charumbira got 5 293 sqm for US$790, acting town clerk Moyo got a 5 052 stand
for US$760 and acting finance director Kusangaya got 5 809 square metres for
US$872 or the local currency equivalent.
Clrs Dutuma and Kashangura got a 5 474 square metres
Industrial stand in Glaudina for $550 which was valued at $0,10 cents per
square metre.
The councillors and top council management conveniently
suspended the procedure followed when allocating land to councillors and top
management.
A land allocation report prepared by Mr Godfrey Kusangaya,
the acting finance director and subsequently submitted to the Finance and
Development Committee by Phakamile Mabhena Moyo, the acting town clerk, said
the councillors and council management masquerade as indigenous black
businesspeople engaged in small businesses yet they are not.
According to laid down procedures that are set in terms of
international best corporate governance practices, councillors are allocated
land in terms of a Local Government ministerial circular and through the Human
Resources and General Purposes Committee and not as private applicants through
the Finance and Development Committee.
Management is also allocated land through the Human
Resources and General Purposes Committee.
According to recommendations of the Finance and Development
Committee minutes dated November 14 adopted by the 1914th ordinary council,
minutes dated November 29 and Finance and Development Committee, minutes dated
14 December 2022, and adopted by the 1916th Full Council on Wednesday 21
December 2022, councillors and top management appear to have conveniently set
aside the procedures set out by council itself in terms of the resolution of
the Land Alienation Sub Committee recorded in Item 3(3) which was adopted by
Full Commission on 29 September 2009 under Item 16 .
The dossier notes that individual councillors and employees
were hand-picked by other senior employees, who then proceeded to proffer
reports recommending allocation of the individual councillors and employees
through the Finance and Development Committee.
Since the reports are on allocations of stands in separate
locations, in one location, the councillors and employees submit their names
directly and in another location they submit names of dubious companies.
It is alleged that councillors who benefited in Aspindale
through their direct personal names, also benefited in Cleveland through
phantom companies.
The report further states that recommendations were rubber
stamped by the Finance and Development Committee before being passed on to full
council for endorsements. During the rubber stamping exercise, the committee is
chaired by a roving chairperson.
Chairpersons alternate their responsibility for chairing on
items depending on who is to benefit on the recommendations in the item on the
agenda.
“Thus the different chairpersons for the day for the same
committee will exchange the responsibility for “passing on the gift” to their
colleagues. Such round robin chairing is repeated until all items are
deliberated upon and until all interested councillors and top management
officials are allocated.”
For instance, on December 14, councillors who had benefited
from illicit land sales in Aspindale recused themselves from the meeting where
they got land almost on a gratis.
“The following applicants recused themselves during
consideration of the matter, Warren Chiwawa, Godfrey Kusangaya, and Cllr C
Mande, during which Cllr GT Hadebe was in the chair during consideration of
this item 15,” read part of the report.
Hence, when a councillor or town official was set to
benefit, he would recuse himself while the matter was being deliberated by his
cronies.
The report further states that conditions for the leasing
and or sale are substantially exaggerated in favour of the councillors and
employees cum beneficiaries.
“Doctored and unsubstantiated land valuations are inferred
from comparisons made with Real Estate Agents whose values are not in tandem
with council land since their values are for built up properties.
“After resolving in their favour, they will enter into
lease agreements, some with an option to buy the stands and in other instances
the individual beneficiary councillors and or employees proceed to sell the
stands to needy citizens for not less than US$120 000 and cede rights to the
buyers.” Herald
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