Suburban
THE extent of the rot at the City of Harare in terms of failure to undertake due diligence on its suppliers was this week exposed during a parliamentary hearing where it emerged that the municipality lost more than US$1,8 million in two separate deals for refuse trucks.
Suburban Reporter
The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Local Government heard on Tuesday that the supplier Mass Breed Investments, trading as FAW Zimbabwe, failed to deliver 15 of the 30 refuse trucks it was supposed to supply and then supplied single skip bin trucks instead of double skip bin trucks on the other deal.
In the first deal council lost US$1,55 million after FAW delivered 15 instead of 30 refuse trucks while in the second deal the municipality was prejudiced of US$330 000 after FAW supplied single skip bin trucks instead of double skip bin trucks.
The revelations also help to explain the municipality’s terrible failure to collect garbage from households and business premises on a regular basis which has led to heaps of garbage piling in most parts of Harare.
Acting town clerk Engineer Mabhena Moyo and acting chamber secretary Mr Warren Chawawa appeared before the committee to explain circumstances surrounding the deal.
However, members of the committee were not satisfied with the responses of the two senior officials who said council engaged FAW Zimbabwe on several occasions to no avail.
The Members of Parliament were irked by council’s lack of action since 2017 to address the issue and recover the money paid to FAW for non-delivery of the trucks.
“City of Harare continued to engage FAW on the non-delivery of outstanding trucks and until the 6th of July 2020 where FAW Zimbabwe wrote to City of Harare changing goal posts alleging that City of Harare was obliged to facilitate procurement of foreign currency from RBZ.
However, in terms of the contract, City of Harare had no obligation to secure forex on behalf of the supplier.
“On 6th July 2020 FAW Zimbabwe also sought for a top up of the contract price for them to deliver the remaining 15 trucks despite the fact that they were paid the contract price in full.
“In essence this was tantamount to contract variation on a breached contract,” said Engineer Moyo.
Mr Chawawa said council had engaged their lawyers Mbidzo, Muchadehama and Makoni Legal Practitioners to pursue the matter and get FAW Zimbabwe to deliver the outstanding trucks and reimburse them for the 10 single skip bin trucks that did not meet the municipality’s specifications.
According to the two senior officials, legal action commenced in July 2020 but they could not produce any records of the action taken so far by their lawyers as requested by the MPs.
“Why was there no delivery inspection when these trucks were delivered so that there could establish whether correct equipment was supplied and the way this company is treated clearly indicates that the city of Harare is getting instruction from a powerful hand above them,” said Mr Joel Gabuzza, the MP for Binga South and member of the committee.
The committee heard that the council officials who did not carry out due diligence in the matter were facing disciplinary action for taking delivery of the wrong skip bin trucks while the municipality has adopted a new standing operating procedure to prevent recurrence of such cases.
The explanations of the officials still left the MPs unconvinced prompting the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Local Government to recommend another physical hearing on the matter.
The Combined Harare Residents Association, the Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development and Young Volunteers for Environment petitioned Parliament in 2020 after it failed to get answers through countless engagements with the City of Harare.
