8 Harare councillors in trouble over abuse of office

The trial of eight Harare councillors accused of corruptly allocating 24 industrial stands to themselves resumed on Thursday, with the State presenting testimony from the council's acting town clerk, Pakhamile Mabhena Moyo.

Moyo informed Magistrate Donald Ndirowei that the accused councillors had not violated any rules, as their positions allowed them to acquire land through proper deliberation by the responsible authorities. However, he noted that his expertise was limited to the water department, so he could not provide a comprehensive assessment of the legality of the councillors' actions.

Earlier testimony from Kennedy Chikandamina, the acting city valuer and Harare City Council estates manager, suggested that irregularities had occurred. Chikandamina claimed that instructions from the town clerk bypassed standard procedures, allowing certain individuals to receive stands without paying application fees.

“In the case of senior council officials and councillors who were allocated commercial or industrial stands, we received a memorandum dated June 17, 2022, from the town clerk, directing the allocation of these stands,” Chikandamina testified. “As a result, applications were not verified, and allocations were made without following the waiting list.”

He further noted that some councillors had not paid the required fees, including Dr. Prosper Chonzi, while councillors Tichaona Mhetu and Brian Matione paid their fees only after the allocations had already been reported to the council.

According to State prosecutor Tendai Tapi, the accused, including Costa Mande, Gilbert Thamsanqa Hadebe, Maxwell Dutuma, Loveness Gomba, Happymore Gotora, Ian Muteto Makone, Stanley Manasi Manyenga, and Shepherd Chikomba, face two counts of criminal abuse of duty as public officers. The councillors, all members of the finance and development committee, are accused of allocating stands to themselves and senior council officials without following proper procedures.

The State's case alleges that in June 2022, a committee chaired by acting town clerk Moyo recommended that council employees be allocated 20% of all new stands in Harare. Following this, Moyo directed the acting finance director, Godfrey Kusangaya, to begin identifying stands for executives as a matter of urgency.

The accused councillors allegedly allocated themselves commercial and industrial stands during meetings in November and December 2022. The court heard that councillors would briefly leave the meeting when their allocation was being discussed, allowing their colleagues to approve the stands in their absence, before rejoining the meeting to participate in further allocations.

Tapi told the court that the councillors unlawfully allocated 24 commercial stands to 12 councillors, 11 senior council officials, and one Member of Parliament. He also highlighted a Local Government Ministry circular, which states that councillors are entitled to a single residential stand within their ward, but must follow normal procedures for commercial or industrial stands.

On a second charge, Tapi alleged that the accused councillors recommended waiving a 2005 sub-committee resolution requiring such stands to be advertised for tender. Instead, they recommended leasing 14 commercial or industrial stands to senior council employees as a condition of service - something outside the committee’s mandate, as remuneration policies are determined by the human capital department.

Tapi concluded that Harare City Council has no policy granting employees the privilege of leasing commercial or industrial stands as part of their service conditions.