The Sunday News
THE Affirmative Action Group (AAG) has scaled up its Bulawayo City Council anti-corruption campaign and has released a letter accusing deputy mayor Councilor Gift Banda of soliciting for more than $22 000 in bribe money in 2013 to swing a tender in the favour of a local construction company.
The lobby group has also written a letter to President Mugabe, detailing the “acts of misconduct, mismanagement and corruption perpetrated by officials of the City of Bulawayo executive and council”.
However, the AAG could find itself in the centre of MDC-T factional politics after it emerged that the company that wrote to the lobby group accusing Clr Banda of demanding a bribe, is partly owned by the organisation’s national vice-president, Mr Sam Ncube.
A top MDC-T official who is a former member of the AAG and has been embroiled in a factional war with Clr Banda, is reportedly using the lobby on a smear campaign.
The pressure group has since threatened to effect a citizen’s arrest on some Bulawayo City Council directors it recently accused of corruption.
The move comes two weeks after AAG filed a High Court chamber application to compel Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Cde Saviour Kasukuwere and Provincial Administrator for Bulawayo Province Ms Khonzani Ncube to exercise their discretionary powers in terms of Section 114 of the Urban Councils Act (Ch 29: 15) and dissolve Bulawayo City Council, citing corruption, abuse of office and maladministration by both council officials and councillors.
AAG wants Minister Kasukuwere to dissolve Bulawayo City Council and suspend its councillors pending a public inquiry.
The court application is yet to be set down for hearing.
However, in its letter to President Mugabe, the pressure group has turned the heat on the City Fathers accusing them of using council coffers to sponsor MDC-T.
“As an empowerment organisation, we are gravely concerned about the state of affairs in the city.
“The attached report is a tip of the iceberg account of the corporate misconduct with the number of incidents reaching alarming levels. The local governance system has been deeply infiltrated that the perpetrators have even become complacent using the Bulawayo city as a tool for financing the opposition and making little effort to conceal their heinous acts,” wrote the AAG.
“At present, we are seeking ways through which this local MDC-dominated council may be dissolved pending a probe of its affairs. We have filed a chamber application at the High Court in Bulawayo to that effect and are seeking executive intervention to relieve the citizens of Bulawayo from the burden that is in the city.”
The complaint to President Mugabe followed the letter which was written to the pressure group by Ajay Properties seeking its intervention in a matter in which Clr Banda is being accused of soliciting for a bribe in order to use his influence in the construction company’s favour.
The letter was written by the company’s director, Mr Obed Ncube, who also happens to be Mr Sam Ncube’s younger brother.
The company had tendered for three sites at Emakhandeni, Cowdray Park and along Falls Road which were zoned for filling stations.
Mr Sam Ncube denied allegations of being behind the letter.
“I am not the one who wrote the letter. The letter clearly shows who signed for it and I do not understand why he is bringing me into this issue. I do have shares in the company but the truth of the matter is that I never wrote the letter and I was not even present when he solicited for the bribe. If the issue is false he has the right to sue people because that is defamation of character,” Mr Ncube said.
In the letter, Mr Obed Ncube claims that before his last two bids were screened, Clr Banda phoned him and requested that they should meet.
“Prior to the final screening by the tender committee of the City of Bulawayo, I received a telephone call from the sitting deputy mayor, Clr Gift Banda, requesting a meeting with me as a representative of Ajay Properties. Unsure of his agenda, we indulged him and accommodated him at the Trek Petroleum offices along Fort Street, to which he came in the company of Clr James Sithole,” said Mr Ncube.
“In that meeting, Clr Gift Banda advised us that it was their intention to award the (tender) to another party as they had made a payment of $22 000 in order to be awarded one of the tenders and, if we want to be awarded, we would need to beat that figure. Clr Banda made clear insinuations that in the absence of that amount, measures would be taken to ensure that we are not awarded any tender.”
He also claimed that one of his company’s bids was missing from the council offices despite being notified that they were shortlisted.
“We later discovered that our bid has mysteriously disappeared from the tendered documents and we were said to have not bid for the Emakhandeni site. All this, despite being called for interviews, noting its presence at the tender box opening ceremony, and purchasing the tender documents as per requirement,” he said.
The city’s mayor, Councilor Martin Moyo, chamber secretary Mrs Sikhangele Zhou and Councilor Ephraim Ncube were reportedly approached by the company on the matter and it is alleged they all promised to solve the issue but nothing materialised.
Clr Banda professed ignorance of the matter, before accusing the AAG of pursuing a hidden agenda.
“This is becoming a little bit funny. I have never dealt with any company by that name and the name Obed Ncube does not even ring any bell to me,” said Clr Banda.
“I am very shocked because I don’t even deal with tenders. Tenders are handled by a certain committee and I am not even part of that committee. James Sithole is not even part of the tender committee and what they are saying does not add up because how was I going to influence the awarding process when I am not even involved?
“The Affirmative Action Group is pursuing some hidden agendas which I am still trying to figure out. Why should I go and solicit for a bribe from someone?”
When contacted for comment, Clr Sithole asked our reporter to call after 30 minutes and an effort was made after the said time and he did not pick his phone. Repeated efforts to get his comment were made but his mobile phone continued to be unanswered.
The council’s Chamber Secretary, Mrs Zhou, was also not picking her phone.
The mayor, Clr Moyo, professed ignorance of the matter.
He said the aggrieved company had the right to approach the court with their evidence to prove that his deputy solicited for a bribe.
“I don’t remember meeting them but this matter involves abuse of office. They were supposed to report to the police with their evidence. I do not want to be dragged into this matter,” said Clr Moyo.
Clr Ncube who the company claimed to have approached said he did not recall meeting people discussing any issue to do with the deputy mayor.
“Since this matter happened sometime back, I don’t remember having a meeting with people discussing such a matter. I have been in many meetings hence I might recall the meeting when I see their faces. I cannot therefore give you an honest response,” he said.
Clr Banda is also under investigation over his recent acquisition of 3,5 hectares of land for the construction of town houses, amid revelations that the business tycoon could have bought the land for far less than its actual value.
He purchased the piece of land in May for $130 000, for the construction of town houses for middle and high income earners.
