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OpenHigh Court Dismisses Bail Appeal For Chimombe And Mpofu Again
The High Court has once again dismissed a bail appeal by businessmen Mike Chimombe and Moses Mpofu, marking the second time their request has been rejected, reported ZimLive.
The duo is accused of defrauding the state of US$7 million in a failed presidential goat supply scheme under a government-issued tender.
High Court Judge Pisirayi Kwenda ruled on Wednesday that they should proceed to trial, as submitted by the State.
Prosecutors argued that a trial date had already been set, rendering their bail appeal moot. Ruled Justice Kwenda:
The objection by the State to the hearing of this appeal based on mootness is upheld and the appeal is dismissed.
Justice Kwenda had said it was his first time to preside over a bail appeal of someone who has been indicted for trial before the commencement of the trial. He said:
If you are already appearing in a certain court, that court is supposed to deal with that matter.
You cannot be appearing in Court A and you go to Court B to apply for bail when that same matter is being heard in court.
To proceed in earnest, we should postpone the matter to the first of October when the trial commences. The trial is just 33 days away, why can’t we wait for the trial to commence?
Prosecutor Anesu Chirenje told the court that Chimombe and Mpofu, who are facing fraud charges, forged a Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) tax clearance certificate, and a National Social Security Authority (NSSA) compliance certificate in the name of Blackdeck Private Limited.
Blackdeck is the company that was awarded the tender by the Ministry of Lands to supply goats under the presidential goat pass-on scheme.
The State is alleging that Blackdeck misrepresented that it was in full compliance with ZIMRA and NSSA requirements, yet investigations indicated the QR code and the reference on NSSA compliance were issued to a totally different company.
It is being further alleged that Blackdeck was deregistered from the NSSA system in January 2016.
Blackdeck was not issued with a ZIMRA tax clearance for 2021 and the QR code on the forged tax clearance belonged to a different company.
Prosecutors further alleged that in 2021, the government introduced the presidential goat pass-on scheme to alleviate poverty among the less privileged households across the country. Said Chirenje:
On September 3, 2021, the Ministry of Lands flighted a tender for the supply and delivery of goats for the presidential goat pass-on scheme with a closing date of September 17, 2021.
On November 16, 2021, the Ministry of Lands entered into a contract agreement with Blackdeck Livestock and Poultry Farming for the supply and delivery of 632,001 goats for the presidential goat pass-on scheme valued at US$87,757,168.
The ministry, believing that what the accused persons had presented to them was true, went on and transferred ZWL$901,294,200 and ZWL$698,705,800 on 21 April 2022 and 29 June 2022 respectively summing up to ZWL$1.6 billion which was equivalent to US$7,712,197.10 into Blackdeck Private Limited’s bank account number towards the purchasing of the said goats.
It is further alleged that Mpofu and Chimombe delayed the supply of the goats and they only managed to deliver a total of 4,208 goats valued at US$331,445.25 from the US$7,712,197.10 paid by the ministry and went on to convert the US$7,380,751.85 for their personal use.
Critics argue that Chimombe and Mpofu are being punished for revealing alleged corruption involving high-ranking State officials in the procurement of electoral materials for the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) ahead of the August 2023 general elections.
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