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Mpofu, Chimombe take aim at Reza
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Business partners Moses Mpofu and Mike Chimombe, who face corruption charges, took the witness stand on Tuesday in the Harare High Court, requesting that their case be referred to the Constitutional Court. The pair contended that their rights to liberty and legal protection were infringed upon by Michael Reza, the head of the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC), when he intervened to prevent their release on bail.
Appearing before Justice Pisirayi Kwenda, Mpofu expressed disbelief at being charged in connection with a government tender to supply goats, especially after an initial communication from ZACC indicated that he would be questioned about alleged corruption linked to over US$100 million in contracts awarded by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to the South African firm Ren-Form CC and its associate, Wicknell Chivayo.
"I was in China when I started receiving calls and messages from friends and family who informed me that I was being sought by ZACC. The situation was also circulating on social media, where the ZACC chairperson (Reza) commented on leaked audio recordings (of Chivayo). He said they had evidence about ZEC contracts corruption and wished to interview myself, Mike Chimombe, and Chivayo," Mpofu explained.
Upon returning to Zimbabwe, the duo attended a ZACC meeting with their lawyers, expecting to discuss the ZEC tender. Instead, they were interrogated solely about accusations of receiving millions from the Ministry of Lands to purchase 86,000 goats, with only 6,978 actually supplied.
Chimombe echoed Mpofu's claims, alleging selective prosecution, pointing out that Chivayo - who was their business partner on the initial ZEC contracts valued at US$40 million - had not been called in for questioning. The pair contended that the charges were a direct consequence of leaked audio recordings involving Chivayo, asserting they were being punished to protect powerful government officials implicated in the alleged corruption.
"When we had a meeting with Chivayo on the payment modalities, he told us that the money was not going to be shared equally. He said the bulk of the money was supposed to go to his people in government, and we were not going to get a fair share," Mpofu recounted in court.
Both Mpofu and Chimombe noted that they had seen Reza in court prior to their first appearance and mentioned that the Prosecutor General had initially agreed to grant them bail. Despite this, after the Prosecutor General had set conditions requiring them to surrender their title deeds, passports, and pay US$1,000 bail each, Reza later altered those terms, ultimately leading to their bail denial.
The hearing is set to continue as the duo seeks to challenge the legitimacy of their prosecution and the handling of their case by ZACC.
Appearing before Justice Pisirayi Kwenda, Mpofu expressed disbelief at being charged in connection with a government tender to supply goats, especially after an initial communication from ZACC indicated that he would be questioned about alleged corruption linked to over US$100 million in contracts awarded by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to the South African firm Ren-Form CC and its associate, Wicknell Chivayo.
"I was in China when I started receiving calls and messages from friends and family who informed me that I was being sought by ZACC. The situation was also circulating on social media, where the ZACC chairperson (Reza) commented on leaked audio recordings (of Chivayo). He said they had evidence about ZEC contracts corruption and wished to interview myself, Mike Chimombe, and Chivayo," Mpofu explained.
Upon returning to Zimbabwe, the duo attended a ZACC meeting with their lawyers, expecting to discuss the ZEC tender. Instead, they were interrogated solely about accusations of receiving millions from the Ministry of Lands to purchase 86,000 goats, with only 6,978 actually supplied.
"When we had a meeting with Chivayo on the payment modalities, he told us that the money was not going to be shared equally. He said the bulk of the money was supposed to go to his people in government, and we were not going to get a fair share," Mpofu recounted in court.
Both Mpofu and Chimombe noted that they had seen Reza in court prior to their first appearance and mentioned that the Prosecutor General had initially agreed to grant them bail. Despite this, after the Prosecutor General had set conditions requiring them to surrender their title deeds, passports, and pay US$1,000 bail each, Reza later altered those terms, ultimately leading to their bail denial.
The hearing is set to continue as the duo seeks to challenge the legitimacy of their prosecution and the handling of their case by ZACC.
Source - zimlive
