Zinara ‘$8m Snow Grader’ Corruption Takes Another Supa-Dropping Twist …Univern Enterprises Directors Are Named
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Zinara ‘$8m Snow Grader’ Corruption Takes Another Supa-Dropping Twist …Univern Enterprises Directors Are Named

  • Univern Enterprises trading as Southern Region Trading Coom
  • SRTC’s telephone numbers are answered at Zinara
  • Director , a sponsor and friend of First Lady Grace Mugabe
  • Southern Region Trading Co has been a regular Zanu PF donor
  • Mandiwanzira married to Grace Mugabe’s sister
  • Southern Region Trading was in 2007 reportedly awarded a tender to supply 22 Nissan trucks to the Vehicle Inspection Department (VID) and was paid US$500 000.
  • Implicated in New Number plate Tender Scandal in 2011

Harare-LAURANCE Neil Sher, Sherice Sher and Musekiwa Kumbula have been named as the Directors of, Univern a company that controversially ‘won a tender’ to supply 40 graders at a cost of $8 million to Zinara , thezimbabwenewslive.com can exclusively reveal.

by Gift K.Mawire

This week Monday, state media Herald and Chronicle published a story , ‘Massive scandal at Zinara… $8m graders ‘useless’… Creditors owed $40m’ which drew scathing reactions but they withheld evidence as to who owned the company fuelling speculation that it could not be an ally of former VP Mujuru.

 

Univern Enterprises trading as Southern Region Trading Co. operating from 77 Coventry Road, Workington Harare was awarded the contract (Contract No ZINARA 01/12) to supply the ‘useless’ graders on 19 November 2012.Although, The State Procument Board, in its letter dated 19 October 2012, Award No PRB 1854 of October 18, 2012, Reference SPB/C/24. The other bidders could not be revealed.There full contract can be read here:zinara-unvern contact

SRTC premises
SRTC premises in Harare

 

SRTC's telephone numbers are answered at Zinara
SRTC’s telephone numbers are answered at Zinara

The contract in possession of this paper shows that the director of administration, Precious Murove, signed the contract on behalf of Univern. Currently, Murove is the acting chief executive, acting finance director and director of administration.

In the contract with Univern, former chief executive Frank Chitukutuku signed on behalf of Zinara with former board members Abdul Kassim and Ben Kaschula appending their signatures as witnesses. Murove’s signature on the contract has raised ethical and procedural questions, further casting doubts on the authority’s corporate governance.

 

Questions were later raised by recipient district councils on the suitability of the graders which were said to be designed for very cold climates as they had snow ploughs. Laurence Sher refused to answer any questions when contacted for comment. On further request, the reporter was put through to a PA to Engineer Juma. The PA referred all questions to Murove.

It raised eyebrows that a Secretary at Univern could direct this paper to ZINARA.

In what some see as an ironic twist, Former Information Minister Supa Mandiwanzira is one of several other politicians singled out in this saga.Laurence Sher is an ally of Grace Mugabe.

 

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The Snow Graders seen here parked at Supa Mandiwanzira’s ZiFM premises in Harare. (c) Gift K.Mawire

Last year in August a Facebook activist provided what many thought was a connection, with a number of these graders parked at ZiFM premises in Highlands. Mandiwanzira is a former Director of ZiFM radio and African Business Connections. Mandiwanzira is believed to be a close friend of Innscor Group Corporate Affairs Executive Mr Musekiwa Kumbula, of 3 Radnor Road Emerald Hill.10637838_10203593611455168_753436926_n10606346_10152398357507523_6344545816829196790_n

 

Interstingly , Kumbula , a former officer in the Ministry of Information , Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings (ZBH) journalist was reportedly in 2007 asked by Late General Mujuru to recruit a capable team of journalists for the planned newspaper, which sources say will be called The Express, spicy up Joice Mujuru’s image as she eyed the presidency. Kumbula at the time was a corporate affairs consultant for Innscor Africa, whose chairman was Ray Kaukonde, a Mujuru loyalist. He also owns Trans Africa Communications, a company that has worked closely with Zanu PF for over a decade.

In 2011, Auditor General’s Office confirmed that Southern Region Trading was in 2007 reportedly awarded a tender to supply 22 Nissan trucks to the Vehicle Inspection Department (VID) and was paid US$500 000.

In the same year  officials in the Ministry of Transport were accused of  having  a hand in ensuring that Southern Region Trading Company, reportedly run by a South African, received the tender for producing the  number plates at a cost of US$160 to change to the new number plates.

Small Scale Farmer of the Year Nyasha Chiwazhika celebrates after presented with the 75 horsepower tractor at the awards ceremony last week. The $25 000 tractor was sponsored by Southern Region Trading Company
Small Scale Farmer of the Year Nyasha Chiwazhika celebrates after presented with the 75 horsepower tractor at the awards ceremony last week. The $25 000 tractor was donated by Southern Region Trading Company t/a Univern

Southern Region Trading Co has been a regular Zanu PF donor and its Director Sher has been a friend of First Lady Grace Mugabe, while Supa Mandiwanzira is believed to be doing business on behalf of his Sister in Law Grace.

 

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