Kasukuwere summoned to parliament

A parliamentary portfolio committee on Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment has summoned ex-Indigenisation minister, Saviour Kasukuwere, to explain the unclear circumstances surrounding the Zimunya-Marange Community Share Ownership Trust and how much money the diamond mining firms operating in the area have so far channelled towards the scheme.

Kasukuwere, now Environment, Water and Climate minister, is fingered to have misled misled President Robert Mugabe and the community that mining firms in Marange would contribute $10 million each towards the trust. The companies on the other hand claim, they were only aware of the $1,5m they had purportedly agreed with Kasukuwere.

The decision to summon the minister comes amid allegations by committee chairperson, Justice Mayor Wadyajena, that Kasukuwere had "threatened him with unspecified action" for his tough stance in probing how the community share ownership schemes were conducted.

The matter is now being handled by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Jacob Mudenda, Zanu PF chief whip, Jorum Gumbo and leader of government business in parliament, (Defence minister) Emmerson Mnangagwa.

According to a schedule of meetings slated for this week, Kasukuwere will appear before the Gokwe-Nembudziya MP- chaired committee this Thursday where he is expected to state his case against the mining firms and his successor, Francis Nhema.

Mining firms told the committee earlier this year they had agreed to contribute $1,5m each towards the community share ownership scheme, while Kasukuwere is said to have led President Mugabe to believe each diamond company would contribute $10m towards the trust as part of the indigenisation deal.

Led by Marange Resources, the mining firms blatantly told the committee they had agreed with Kasukuwere's ministry to contribute $1,5m each as part of their fulfilment to the empowerment law, with Anjin revealing that it had agreed with the minister to pay the amount over a five-year period.

Anjin board member, Munyaradzi Machacha, who is also the Zanu PF director for commissariat, told the committee they were told by Kasukuwere they should not worry about fulfilling the pledge if they had no money as they could do so "within five years".

"I personally told Hon Kasukuwere that we had no money to contribute to the trusts at that time and he said we could fulfil the pledge even after five years," Machacha said.

Recently, Mbada chairman, Robert Mhlanga, pulled the biggest shock to the committee when he claimed that his company was "never involved and did not participate in the formation of the trust" but had contributed $200 000 out of the  will and desire to see a changed community.

"I was never approached by anyone, and let me put this correctly, we never made any pledge to the trust but contributed to the trust out of our own understanding about the need to empower the community," Mhlanga told the Wadyajena-led committee.

Mbada and Marange Resources are the only two firms that have contributed $200 000 each towards the trust.

Mugabe launched the Zimunya-Marange Share Ownership Scheme in 2012 but until now, no project has been initiated by the trust.

To bolster his case against the miners, Kasukuwere produced letters that were published in the media stating the diamond firms were aware of their $10m obligation, with one of the letters allegedly being sent to Patience Khumalo, the ex-Mbada boss.

However, Kasukuwere's defence was shredded by his successor, Nhema, who has denied the existence of the letters.

"I have checked with all the files at the ministry, It seems I cannot locate them, I have even asked officials whether the letters are there," Nhema told the committee. "The problem is that there is no reference, (and) no date stamp to authenticate the letters, I have checked with many files, I don't know if they are there."

Asked by Wadyajena whether the letters were fake or not, Nhema responded: "I can't say that, but I have not seen any of the said letters. I tried to ask the officials, but no one knows about them."

"There was no written agreement on that chairperson, it was a gentlemen's agreement based on mutual respect and understanding of the law."

One of the letters, allegedly written by Kasukuwere to the then Mines minister, Obert Mpofu, requested that he assists in ensuring mining firms contributed their pledges to the Zimunya-Marange trust. Mpofu has since denied ever seeing such a letter.