National

Fraud accused Victoria Falls mayor to appear in court

Published

3 years ago

October 7, 2022

BY VICFALLSLIVE REPORTER

Victoria Falls mayor Somvelo Dhlamini is expected to appear in court today following his dramatic arrest on Thursday by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) on allegations of fraud.

Dhlamini’s arrest was a culmination of a vicious power struggle at the MDC Alliance controlled local authority after town clerk Ronnie Dube was frog marched out of his office on Tuesday by a group of residents and war veterans.

The mayor was accused of orchestrating Dube’s humiliation after the town clerk ignored a move to suspend him over allegations of corruption.

In a brief statement on Thursday, ZACC said Dhlamini was charged for fraud or alternatively concealing from a principal interest in a transaction.

The charges are said to be emanating from an alleged fraudulent purchase of a residential stand in a low density area by the mayor.

Dhlamini has previously been arrested over the same allegations.

He was also suspended from the mayoral position by the MDC Alliance when it was still led by Nelson Chamisa only to be reinstated by Douglas Mwonzora after he seized control of the opposition party.

The angry war veterans and residents accused Dube of corruption and mismanagement of the local authority’s finances.

Dube, who has been under fire over a US$80 000 car loan he got from council, allegedly ignored his suspension by Dhlamini last month and has been reporting for work.

Dhlamini had on Tuesday told VicFallsLive that a group of about 15 people, who included war veterans and members of the Hwange District Residents Association, stormed the town clerk’s office at around 4PM and instructed him to vacate his office to pave way for investigations into the allegations raised against him.

“We did not know that they were coming,” the mayor said.

“I just received a call from them when they were already there and they invited me to his office,” Dhlamini said.

“It was around 4PM and they forcefully ejected him saying they were not happy with the level of corruption and mismanagement, which has resulted in poor service delivery.

“They told him that investigations were directed towards corrupt handshakes that he has received and the car that he recently bought.

“They exchanged words where he questioned the source of their allegations, but they eventually took him out and locked his office before putting a key blocker.”

Victoria Falls ratepayers have been boycotting the city council’s 2023 budget consultation meetings demanding answers over various allegations of corruption.

Residents boycotted meetings held last month and demanded to be first addressed by council over the alleged irregular sale of commercial stands and the US$89 000 loan that was given to Dube to buy a car, a luxury handshake car for the mayor and leasing of breweries.

The Victoria Falls Combined Residents Association has since written a letter to relevant government ministries, police and parliament asking them to investigate the allegations.

They said they had proof of corrupt deals by the town clerk and councillors.

Victoria Falls residents, mainly in the high density suburbs, have endured over six months without water and the perennial shortage has been worsening since August.

Residents argue that poor service delivery is caused by mismanagement, although council recently told VicFallsive that the issue of water shortages had to do with rising demand during the summer season.

National

Ranger killed by elephant in Kariba

Published

1 month ago

March 14, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

A 62-year-old ranger, Josphat Mandishara, was tragically killed by an elephant in Kariba yesterday.

Mandishara, who worked for the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), was on patrol in the Gatche-gatche area with fellow rangers and police officers.

At around 10 pm, Mandishara returned to the harbor where their boat was docked, and that’s when he encountered the elephant. The elephant charged at him, causing fatal injuries. His colleagues were nearby, resupplying at the Gatche-gatche Irrigation Scheme.

Mandishara’s body was taken to Kariba District Hospital for a post-mortem, and the incident was reported to the police.

ZimParks has sent a team to manage the problem elephant and prevent similar incidents in the future.

The Director General of ZimParks, Prof. Edson Gandiwa, and his team have sent condolences to Mandishara’s family, friends, and colleagues. Mandishara will be remembered for his dedication to wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe.

National

ZIMRA customs officer appears in court for criminal abuse of office

Published

2 months ago

February 3, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY STAFF REPORTER

A Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) customs officer, Phillip Kuvenga, has been accused of criminal abuse of office for allegedly assisting in the importation of banned motor vehicles.

Kuvenga, 28, who is stationed at Victoria Falls, allegedly received documents from clients, completed valuation sheets, and carried out the valuation process. However, he is accused of endorsing different chassis numbers to deceive his supervisors during the validation and approval process.

After obtaining approval, Kuvenga would capture the correct chassis numbers in the ASYCUDA World System. He would then alter or replace the documents submitted earlier to his supervisors.

The offense came to light when a motor vehicle that had not yet arrived in Zimbabwe was found to have been already registered. A thorough check by ZIMRA led to Kuvenga’s arrest.

Kuvenga appeared in court on February 1, where he was denied bail by Magistrate Gift Manyka. He is expected to appear in court again today for another bail hearing.

National

Retailers send Mnangagwa SOS as shops continue shutting down over operational woes

Published

3 months ago

January 27, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY ZIMLIVE

The Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) has implored President Emmerson Mnangagwa to intervene and save the sector which has seen various formal retail and wholesale businesses closing shop countrywide due to operational challenges.

In a statement on Sunday, CZR president Denford Mutashu said the continued closure of formal retail and wholesale businesses is a direct consequence of the tough economic environment that has consistently failed to support formalised sector players who face stiff competition from informal businesses and vendors the majority of whom have no tax obligations to deal with.

Mutashu said his association was concerned that authorities continue to downplay the crisis.

“The recent closure of several outlets under the N. Richards Group, coupled with Spar Zimbabwe’s painful decision to shut down Queensdale Spar, Choppies Zimbabwe’s exit from the market, and Mahommed Mussa’s significant reduction of shop space by 60%, highlights the growing crisis.

“As the representative association for these and other brands, CZR is alarmed that while formal businesses face enormous challenges, the authorities continue to present a different picture of the operating environment,” he said.

Given the situation, Mutashu said, only President Mnangagwa can rescue the troubled sector.

“CZR therefore calls for urgent intervention from His Excellency, President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, to rescue what remains of the formalized retail and wholesale sector,” said Mutashu.

He said the sector was in urgent need of rescue.

“While CZR acknowledges the continued support from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, it is clear that the root causes of these challenges are fiscal and monetary in nature. These require urgent and decisive action to ensure the survival of formal businesses.

“CZR therefore appeals to the Presidium to prioritize interventions aimed at saving jobs and mitigating the ongoing wave of shop closures and retrenchments,” he said.