PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa’s second republic, which he proclaimed when he came into office in November 2017 following a coup that ended long-time ruler Robert Mugabe’s nearly four-decade rule, has been underpinned by corruption scandals.
Today we look at the biggest scandals that have rocked Mnangagwa’s administration.
The US$60 million Covid-19 procurement scandal
The squandering of the Covid-19 funds emanated from the awarding of a US$60 million tender to Drax International which is headquartered in the United Arab Emirates by then Health minister Obadiah Moyo.
The tender was concluded without the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe approval. Moyo allegedly influenced the awarding of the tender to Drax International, which sold Covid-19 drugs and personal protective equipment to the government at inflated prices.
Drax International representative Delish Nguwaya was also arrested in connection with the same matter.
Following the tender scam, Moyo was sacked from the government.
But Moyo is reportedly linked to Mnangagwa whose family friend Nguwaya had been fingered in the US$60 million Covid-gate scam.
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Nguwaya’s company, Drax (Pvt) Limited allegedly robbed the nation of millions of dollars through inflating Covid-19 equipment, drugs and personal protective equipment.
The government has been criticised for failing to deal with corruption at a time when the country is in desperate need of an international bailout package to save the economy from collapse.
Looting of US$89 million Covid-19 funds (2019-2020)
Following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019 that rattled the globe and claimed millions of lives, Mnangagwa’s government was mired in a multi-million-dollar scandal involving politically exposed persons (Peps) as it battled to contain the catastrophic disease.
In 2020, Parliament's public accounts committee (Pac) called on the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) and police to investigate the abuse of US$89 million in Covid-19 relief funds by government officials.
The committee analysed then auditor-general Mildred Chiri’s 2021 report which exposed gross irregularities and theft of Covid-19 donations.
In the report, Chiri revealed how fake names, identity documents and mobile phone numbers were used as part of a broader scheme to siphon part of the over US$890 million from the government.
The audit was undertaken with the aid of the World Bank in six out of 10 provinces, focusing on disbursement of Covid-19 relief funds, and management of quarantine centres and isolation centres, among others.
Covid-19 allowances were supposed to be paid to small-to-medium enterprises whose incomes were affected by lockdowns, food insecure households, people with disabilities, the elderly, chronically-ill persons and child-headed households.
US$344 million Pomona dumpsite scandal (2022)
In 2022, government controversially handed management rights of the Pomona dumpsite to Netherlands-headquartered Geogenix BV fronted by local businessman Nguwaya in a murky US$344 million deal.
Geogenix BV is owned by an Albanian businessman Mirel Mèrtiri ,who has been mired in controversial waste management and incinerator deals in other countries.
Nguwaya is a close associate of Mnangagwa’s family.
The US$350 million transaction between Geoginix BV which runs Geo-Pomona Waste Management Private Limited and the government has over the years fought fierce battles with the Harare City Council (HCC).
Gold mafia scandal (2023)
Last year, Middle East-based international news outlet Al Jazeera televised an investigative documentary casting light on how close associates of Mnangagwa were involved in gold smuggling and laundering in activities that prejudiced the country billions of dollars.
In the documentary titled Gold Mafia, Zimbabwe featured prominently after Mnangagwa’s ambassador-at-large Uebert Angel, born Uebert Mudzanire, was secretly recorded offering to help undercover Al Jazeera journalists to launder US$1,2 billion in dirty money.
The Al Jazeera journalists had introduced themselves to Angel as part of Chinese criminals that wanted to clean dirty money through gold smuggling.
Chivayo US$40 million Zec saga
This year, flamboyant businessman and ex-convict Wicknell Chivayo was entangled in a US$40 million tender scandal involving supply of biometric material to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) ahead of last year’s disputed elections.
It also emerged that the figure was highly inflated with Zec being charged over US$1 million for an HP server, which costs just over US$4 000.
In 2013, the flamboyant businessman was awarded a US$183 million contract by the Zimbabwe Power Company to construct the Gwanda solar project. The power plant is yet to be set up.
In recent times, Chivayo made headlines for splashing high-end vehicles to prominent people aligned to Zanu PF.
US$80 million goat scandal (2024)
Last month, the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) announced that it was investigating businessmen Mike Chimombe and Moses Mpofu over a US$80 million issued to them by the government to supply goats to villagers under the Presidential Goats Scheme.
On November 16, 2021, the government of Zimbabwe represented by the Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development ministry entered into a contract agreement with Blackdeck Livestock and Poultry Farming represented by Mpofu valued at US$87 757 168 for the supply and delivery of 632 000 goats over a period of five years.
Mpofu and Chimombe are currently before the courts after they failed to deliver under terms of the tender.
A Zacc internal report revealed that the pair spent millions on bling lifestyles, buying top-of-the-range vehicles and other luxuries.
Acting auditor-general report
Government may have lost millions of United States dollars purchasing vehicles for various ministries including the police which were never delivered at a time when hospitals lack basic medicines and other public services are collapsing due to underfunding.
Last week the acting auditor general Rea Kujinga report revealed a significant financial leakage and suspected looting in the procurement of vehicles by various government ministries.
In a nutshell the report mentioned that advance payments totaling ZWL$1.7 billion and US$2.3 million were made for vehicle purchases, but the vehicles were never delivered.
In many cases, suppliers missed delivery dates, breached contracts, and modified the approved vehicle models, making it difficult to verify ownership, purchase prices, and the number of vehicles ordered and delivered.
Contract monitoring was ineffective, and the government failed to invoke provisions for non-performance by suppliers. This has led to risks of excessive contract price variations.
Several ministries, including Home Affairs, Parliament, Finance, Lands, and Environment and Climate, made advance payments for vehicles that were never delivered or partially delivered.
The report highlights a lack of documentation, evidence of steps taken against non-performing suppliers, and issues with the custodianship of some vehicles that were procured.
The findings suggest widespread mismanagement and potential corruption in the government's vehicle procurement processes, even as the country faces challenges in public service delivery due to underfunding.
The fight against corruption in Zimbabwe will remain abstract without genuine inclusion of all stakeholders.
*Gary Gerald Mtombeni is a journalist based in Harare. He writes here in his own personal capacity. For feedback Email garymtombeni@gmail.com/ call- +263778861608
