AN official from the Local Government and Public Works ministry yesterday appeared at the Harare Magistrates Courts to answer to allegations of extorting more than US$1,5 million from a development company director.
Magistrate Marehwanazvo Gofa remanded Everest Nyamadzawo (39) to February 12 next year on US$100 bail.
The State alleges that sometime in 2008, Cabletron Enterprises (Pvt) Ltd acquired pieces of land within Mabeleign, Strathaven and Sentosa areas from the Local Government and Public Works ministry for housing development projects valued at US$1 537 676,88.
The court heard that among the pieces of land were privately-owned ones.
The ministry reportedly cancelled the lease agreements for the privately-owned land promising to compensate Cabletron Enterprises with State-owned land.
However, the court heard that the compensation process took long, leading to the company lodging a complaint to the then minister in 2021.
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Investigations established that the ministry owed the company land totalling 30,773 hectares and it was recommended that it availed the land.
The minister approved the recommendations and a report was forwarded to the Department of State Lands for administrative implementation.
On September 29, 2021, the Local Government and Public Works acting permanent secretary wrote to the company’s managing director informing him that the ministry had agreed to compensate.
On February 3, 2022, Nyamadzawo allegedly generated an internal memo seeking authority from the minister to allocate the company pieces of land in Mabelreign/Sentosa area and it was approved.
The company identified State-owned open spaces within the Mabelreign/Sentosa area for the compensation.
From November 18, 2021, the company submitted several layout plans to Nyamadzawo for onward transmission to his colleagues for further processing.
On March 17, 2022, Nyamadzawo allegedly wrote to the Surveyor-General’s Office requesting the surveying of the stands.
In the same letter, Nyamadzawo indicated that it was the sole responsibility of the company to meet all costs incurred in the processing of all paperwork.
It is alleged that when he and his accomplices realised that Cabletron Enterprises was about to get full compensation for its land, they began to slow down the processing of the paperwork.
Nyamadzawo, who was mandated to be the point man by the ministry in the Department of State Lands, allegedly withheld the request for title survey.
He allegedly provided personal details of his spouse Florence Mhlanga to Cabletron Enterprises instructing the firm to allocate his portion of stands to her.
Nyamadzawo allegedly disadvantaged Cabletron Enterprises by delaying the compensation process from 2021 to date.