SUSPENDED Gweru City Town Clerk Vakayi Chikwekwe who was arrested for allegedly violating tender procedures resulting in companies Shesham, Cacas and Wackdrive winning tenders to service stands in the city believes he is being persecuted for liking Zanu PF.
Chikwekwe says he had no capacity to award the tenders as it was a resolution by a full council meeting and his arrest is the work of councillors from the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change who are fighting him for spearheading people centered policies in the city.
His lawyer Admire Rubaya of Rubaya and Chatambudza Legal Practitioners has written to the prosecutor general Nelson Mutsonziwa to reconsider the decision to prosecute him based on “false allegations.”
“Our client is left to believe the whispers that he has heard that Councillors from the Citizens’ Coalition for Change were boasting and celebrating that they had used ZACC to fight the only person who is regarded as a “ZanuPF policies proponent” without them realising that they are being misused and abused.
“Our client instructs that there are certain quarters within Gweru City Council who dislike him with a passion because he, just like the ZANUPF government which is people-centred, was clearly propagating peoplecentred policies to the chagrin of some of the members of the opposition who do not want to see ZANUPF snatching Council seats within Gweru City Council,” the letter reads.
The lawyers said Chikwekwe had no role in the awarding of the tenders and questioned the decision to leave other people including the former Mayor who signed as the council representative while targeting him only.
They argue that there is nothing criminal on Chikwekwe’s part and he is just a victim of abuse by individuals through the justice delivery system and Zacc.
“One then wonders if for one second it was criminal conduct for a council employee to comply with a full Council’s Resolution why he was the only one who was arrested. Is it because he is not a member of the Citizens Coalition for Change or he a member of the Movement for Democratic Change?
“He wonders why ZACC only targeted him in circumstances where even the current Mayor of Gweru Mr Hamutendi Kombayi took to the residents’ whatsapp platform group [6UPRARDA] to castigate our client’s arrest relating to the tender in question,” the lawyers wrote.
It is their argument that Chikwekwe cannot be held criminally liable for awarding tenders which is outside his duties and all he did was to follow council resolution.
“Mr V. D. Chikwekwe cannot assume collective criminal liability on behalf of the full council in circumstances where the Town Clerk is not the one who made the decision to award the tender. Therefore, our client cannot be held criminally liable for awarding a tender that he did not award.
“The allegation that our client unilaterally awarded the tender in question is actually false. Therefore, our client was clearly placed on remand on the basis of false information.
“In any event, our client is not the one who notified the successful bidders of their success in getting the tender. The successful bidders were actually notified by Engineer Robson Manatsa,” the letter reads.
The lawyers have appealed to the legal minds in the National Prosecuting Authority to have a close analysis of the matter before March 17 when Chikwekwe returns to court for routine remand.
“Thus, with respect, this is one of those matters where we defer to your legal expertise in criminal matters as Honourable Prosecutor General, together with your team of brilliant legal practitioners for purposes of considering the evidence as discovered herein and our submissions so that you make an informed decision whether this is a matter worthy proceeding with or this is another wild goose chase which case will fall like a deck of cards,” the lawyers said.