The Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) has apprehended four officials from the Harare City Council on accusations of improperly awarding a street lights contract worth over US$9.2 million to Juluka Enndo Joint Venture, a company owned by businessman Moses Mpofu.
This tender was granted without following the appropriate procedures.
Moses Mpofu, who is currently in remand prison for fraud charges related to the US$87 million Presidential Goat Scheme, holds a significant stake in Juluka Enndo Joint Venture. Despite not meeting the tender requirements, his company was awarded the contract.
The arrested officials include Never Murerwa (62) and Jabulani Mukomazi (44) from the city’s Procurement Management Unit, principal accountant Denford Zhungu (69), and engineering technician Tawanda Mutenhabundo (29).
These charges stem from their involvement in the tender evaluation committee for the streetlight refurbishment project on various roads in Harare.
Also read: 52 learners cheat death as fire guts Matopo boarding school dormitory
ZACC alleges that the four officials bypassed the competitive bidding process and granted the tender to a company with a poor track record. In January, Harare began rehabilitating street lights in preparation for the upcoming SADC Summit.
On January 29, the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (PRAZ) granted specific exemptions for the timely completion of these projects. An invitation to tender was published on March 15 and listed on the PRAZ portal on March 19, attracting responses from eleven companies.
On March 28, Murerwa appointed the Tender Opening Committee. On April 19, an evaluation committee, including Mukomazi, Zhungu, and Mutenhabundo, awarded the tender to four companies for eight of the ten lots, each limited to two lots.
Juluka Enndo Joint Venture was initially disqualified for not meeting the requirements. However, the four officials colluded to unprocedurally award the remaining lots to Juluka Enndo Joint Venture, ignoring the general procurement rules.
Further investigations revealed that Juluka Enndo Joint Venture’s owners also run Synlak (Pvt) Ltd, which failed to deliver on a 2019 biogas digester project. This disqualification was overlooked by the accused, violating bidding document conditions that barred bidders with poor execution records.
This unprocedural action potentially cost the City of Harare US$9,244,328.71. ZACC claims the officials acted against their duties to unduly favor Juluka Enndo Joint Venture.
ZACC spokesperson Commissioner Thandiwe Mlobane confirmed the arrests, stating the officials were taken into custody on Tuesday and were expected to appear in Harare Magistrate’s Court for initial remand.
For comments, Feedback and Opinions do get in touch with our editor on WhatsApp: +44 7949 297606
