Mliswa blasts Zanu-PF MP Wadyajena

INDEPENDENT Norton Member of Parliament (MP), Temba Mliswa has unleashed a vitriolic attack against Zanu-PF legislator Mayor Wadyajena for allegedly abusing his position as Chairperson of Portfolio Committee on Agriculture to settle personal scores with individuals he believes were behind his recent arrest.

In August, Wadyajena was arrested for defrauding the Cotton Company of Zimbabwe (Cottco) US$5 million following investigations by the Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission (ZACC).

Mliswa claimed Wadyajena, whose matter is still before the courts, needed to recuse himself from the committee until charges are cleared.

According to the Norton MP, Wadyajena has been using his powers as committee chairperson to attack Minister of Agriculture Anxious Masuka, whose move to increase his ministry's shareholding in Cottco unearthed corruption by Wadyajena.

"On the 27th of October, the Minister of Agriculture Anxious Masuka was called to appear before the Portfolio Committee on Agriculture on issues of ZINWA… However to my surprise the committee members did not ask their Chairman, Wadyajena to recuse himself from the meeting," said Mliswa.

"Wadyajena has matters before the courts where Cottco is involved and he has also accused the same minister of being involved and trying to have him arrested. Thus by presiding, he was chairing a meeting against a person whom he has accused of a lot of things. It's sad.

"Hon Masuka's only crime is that he sought to have the ministry increase its shareholding in Cottco. A due diligence was done, as is customary before such a move, and they unearthed corrupt activities pointing the culprit as Wadyajena. Now he is being hounded because of that."

Mliswa accused opposition and ruling party members who sit in the Agriculture Committee for being corrupt following their failure to speak
out against Wadyajena,

"Even more worrying, the Portfolio Committee he chairs has members from both sides of the political spectrum; yet none of them has raised this issue.

"Some members on these committees have been paid money to remain silent and allow a conflicted person to chair the committee.

"It only requires a single MP in that committee to do that. Yet none has managed to do that from both Zanu-PF and CCC members," said the Independent MP.