News / National
Obert Mpofu reveals sources of wealth
06 Oct 2014 at 12:14hrs | Views
THE ongoing cross-examination of 'mega-rich' minister of Infrastructure and Development Minister obert Mpofu in the US$2 billion fraud case involving former ZMDC chief executive Dominic Mubaiwa and Core Mining director Lovemore Kurotwi prompted Mpofu to reveal his source of wealth at the High Court today.
Mpofu has in the past been adamant of opening up about his wealth, chosing to be diplomatic in the few instances where he has done so. This has been partly because Mpofu is alleged to have amassed the bulk of his wealth by dipping into the diamonds jar during his tenure as Minister of Mines but there is no proof so far to buttress those claims.
But today, Mpofu was again pushed into a tight corner by international acclaimed, awarding lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa to justify his suspicious wealth.
Mtetwa asked Minister Mpofu to reveal his source of wealth, as he had during his evidence in chief told the court that he was very wealthy and could not take a bribe from Lovemore Kurotwi who is accused of potentially defrauding the state of US$2 billion in a diamond mining investment deal.
Mpofu initially said he could not respond to a sarcastic question before being reminded how he had invited his character evidence by labelling the accused persons as fraudsters before the court had pronounced its findings in the trial.
He narrated his employment history and said his business empire had been initiated by a golden handshake which he received through the Sandura Commission, which happened when he was a Senior Managing Director at Treggers in the late 1980s.
Minister Mpofu said he ran Adventure Forex Bureau, which he sold to CFX in the 1990s before he procured buildings in Harare and Bulawayo.
He added that is one of the largest cattle ranchers in the country with a head of 4 000 cattle but could not divulge off head his net worth.
Mtetwa accused the Minister of instructing the mining firms to pay astronomic legal fees to the private law firm for services that were supposed to have been carried out by the Attorney General's Civil Division.
In response Mpofu told the defence lawyer not to be ignorant as even her law firm had been seconded to assist his current ministry through the Attorney General's office.
Mtetwa further grilled Mpofu asking why the legal fees did not specify the services rendered and why there was no value-added tax indicated.
The Minister however said his written instructions to Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) were very clear and he was surprised at why Mtetwa wanted to speak of other law firms deviating from the issues at hand.
Mtetwa asked what had happened to the US$3 million of the dividend due to Kurotwi which had been withheld due to his instructions.
She also asked what had happened to the US$10 million in the company bank account at the time Kurotwi was arrested, and US$140 million worth of diamond carats mentioned in the Grant Thornton audit instituted by ZMDC.
Minister Mpofu however said ZMDC was the rightful company to answer as they are instituting the audit.
Mpofu has in the past been adamant of opening up about his wealth, chosing to be diplomatic in the few instances where he has done so. This has been partly because Mpofu is alleged to have amassed the bulk of his wealth by dipping into the diamonds jar during his tenure as Minister of Mines but there is no proof so far to buttress those claims.
But today, Mpofu was again pushed into a tight corner by international acclaimed, awarding lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa to justify his suspicious wealth.
Mtetwa asked Minister Mpofu to reveal his source of wealth, as he had during his evidence in chief told the court that he was very wealthy and could not take a bribe from Lovemore Kurotwi who is accused of potentially defrauding the state of US$2 billion in a diamond mining investment deal.
Mpofu initially said he could not respond to a sarcastic question before being reminded how he had invited his character evidence by labelling the accused persons as fraudsters before the court had pronounced its findings in the trial.
He narrated his employment history and said his business empire had been initiated by a golden handshake which he received through the Sandura Commission, which happened when he was a Senior Managing Director at Treggers in the late 1980s.
Minister Mpofu said he ran Adventure Forex Bureau, which he sold to CFX in the 1990s before he procured buildings in Harare and Bulawayo.
He added that is one of the largest cattle ranchers in the country with a head of 4 000 cattle but could not divulge off head his net worth.
Mtetwa accused the Minister of instructing the mining firms to pay astronomic legal fees to the private law firm for services that were supposed to have been carried out by the Attorney General's Civil Division.
In response Mpofu told the defence lawyer not to be ignorant as even her law firm had been seconded to assist his current ministry through the Attorney General's office.
Mtetwa further grilled Mpofu asking why the legal fees did not specify the services rendered and why there was no value-added tax indicated.
The Minister however said his written instructions to Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) were very clear and he was surprised at why Mtetwa wanted to speak of other law firms deviating from the issues at hand.
Mtetwa asked what had happened to the US$3 million of the dividend due to Kurotwi which had been withheld due to his instructions.
She also asked what had happened to the US$10 million in the company bank account at the time Kurotwi was arrested, and US$140 million worth of diamond carats mentioned in the Grant Thornton audit instituted by ZMDC.
Minister Mpofu however said ZMDC was the rightful company to answer as they are instituting the audit.
Source - zbc
