Source: Arrested Zinara officials close to Mphoko, Grace – The Zimbabwe Independent July 22, 2016
THE Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara) officials, acting chief executive officer Engineer Moses Juma and non-executive director Davison Norupiri, who were unprocedurally released from police custody last week by Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko after being arrested for allegedly defrauding the parastatal of US$1,3 million are close associates of the vice-president and First Lady Grace Mugabe, Zimbabwe Independent has learnt.
Elias Mambo/Herbert Moyo
Mphoko, who was acting President at the time, drove to Avondale Police Station in Harare on Wednesday evening and personally secured the release of the incarcerated duo on the grounds that they were his “boys”.
Government and police sources said Mphoko was so angry when he arrived at the police station that he took off his jacket and threatened to assault police officers after they refused to release the duo.
The Independent has gathered information that Juma and Norupira have been financing Grace and Mphoko’s political activities using Zinara funds.
Norupira, who is also Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) chairperson, is said to have played a key role in ensuring that Grace officiates at ZNCC’s national dinner and business awards in Victoria Falls three weeks ago.
Grace was the guest of honour at the event held under the theme Economic Transformation in a New Normal Economy, New Challenges, New Ideas.
Zinara and Juma in particular have been instrumental in sourcing goods, which the vice-president subsequently donated to various constituencies in Bulawayo and the Matabeleland provinces in a move aimed at propelling his political image.
Mphoko has been using donations reportedly in a quest to build his political profile and national social base after being appointed to the position almost out of the blue by President Robert Mugabe ahead of more experienced and well-known officials.
In May, Juma accompanied Mphoko and Bulawayo Provincial Affairs minister Eunice Sandi-Moyo to the vice-president’s former school Mzilikazi Primary School in Bulawayo where he donated computers sourced by Zinara.
“I went out and sourced the computers which I was given by Zinara. The acting chief executive officer, Moses Juma, is here today to witness that I don’t divert the gadgets,” Mphoko revealed.
Two weeks later, Grace and Mphoko teamed up to hand over 30 000 bricks and 300 bags of cement to Mpopoma High School, also in Bulawayo, for the construction of an Advanced Level classroom block.
The consignment was sourced by Zinara and at the handover ceremony, Mphoko openly commended the parastatal for assisting Grace with the donation.
“I want to thank the First Lady for taking note of the request by Mpopoma High School. I also want to thank Zinara for assisting the First Lady in fulfilling the wish of the school to commence their construction projects,” said Mphoko at the function tattended by several ministers, deputy ministers, senior government officials, legislators and senior Zinara executives.
Government officials also said Zinara has in the past provided large quantities of fuel to Grace and Mphoko for various meetings held countrywide.
COMMENTS
WOW!!!! Theft of the highest order!!! When will it ever stop?
Be afraid, Zimbabwe, be very afraid.
At least we now know where the toll money has been going, because it certainly hasn’t been used on the roads.
“I went out and sourced the computers which I was given by Zinara. The acting chief executive officer, Moses Juma, is here today to witness that I don’t divert the gadgets,” Mphoko revealed.
It is now very bad, ne?
kana vatongi vave mbava zvakawoma
Amazing! Zinara money must be free money to Grace and Mphoko. Corruption of the highest order.
So much for the rule of law and fighting corruption! Mphoko should resign but won’t. He should have been arrested but the cops knew what would happen to them if they upheld the law.
Nice typo in second last paragraph: “at the function tattended by several ministers.” Is this a new word from Shona/English meaning “going to a meeting to thank your boss for your corrupt gains”?
Is this where our tollgate money is going? Leaving the roads to ror but finding despots like Mpoko. Another ZANU PF cash cow
this is corruption in case some didn’t know.
Mphpko was bullied and told by Grace to go and release those thieves. Since Mugabe was out of the country, the only available link was Mphoko. It seems web always push him around, just like his wife refuses to leave the hotel.
An Ndebele, an ex-combatant, and a vice-President, being pushed around by women? And also being hen-pecked by the media. Poor guy.
He is the best VP from Matabeleland because for the first time we have somebody who cares about our affairs.We do not care where he gets the funds to develop our region which has been ignored for many years. The local media does not like him because it wants to see funds used somewhere else.Make all the noises we do not care as long as he develops our region to correct the imbalances of the past.
I would call him corrupt if he had diverted the funds for personal use as we have witnessed from many ministers from Mashonaland regions.A young minister recently used parastatal funds to buy a very expensive car but our local media was not too worried about it.@Joel Cool tell me-Who in the current minsters and VPs is not pushed around by the current powers ?????
The gravy train contines. An acting president who thinks he is above the law, who then wants to assault a police officer. ….. when will all this end
@Mixed Race, I think obtaining money or resources by corrupt means cannot be justified by who is benefiting from that corrupt act. In this case Zinara money which is supposed to be used to repair roads and reduce the road toll is being diverted to some purposes which it is not supposed which is not right.
Let’s not justify corruption by looking at who is benefiting from that corruption.
At least funds funds used development in both cases.
It will soo end!!!!!
We always suspected that our “Zimbabwe, the republic with a hidden flag” was a true banana one…Pelie Mphoko, with this new madness of his, has just proved this beyond all reasonable doubt.
But what would you expect from a “freedom fighter” who spent all of his freedom fighting years lounging half drunk in the best bars and the best restaurants in Mozambique?
There is where he learned to get “so angry” and “take off his jacket and threaten to assault police officers”. Where else in this World would a country’s Deputy President do this? It would be real funny if it were not so sad!
How are we ever going to right all such wrongs when our Zimbabwe becomes a true democratic state?
Who will have the gigantic task of documenting and punishing all these evils?
How is it news that the gangsters divert state resources for partisan purposes?
It’s cool – the more outrageous they become the better, because it can be tricky catching a clever thief. Once their protection is gone, these clowns will be ‘lambs to the slaughter’. They are actually too stupid to cover up their excesses.
jus because 1,3 m hav been swindled for donation n Mat land u start making noise if it waz Zvimba u wuld be praising wer z the 15 billion
We shall continue to comment and analyse until when….Zinara and NASSA , ZBC are the remaining Quasi Gvt institutions in which the regime is financing and sustaining its intelligencia and CIOs. We all need to play our part varume or else we all doomed.
It’s disturbing to see two Ndebele gripes here suggesting that they are victimised and that corruption is OK if it supports Matabeleland. If you support Mphoko because of that, you have a serious ‘chip on the shoulder’.