TwO Lands and Agriculture ministry officials were yesterday chucked out of Parliament for failing to produce documents with regards to contracts awarded to different companies for winter wheat programme.
By Veneranda Kanga
Acting director of procurement in the ministry, Remigio Makoni and Peter Mudzamiri (director of finance) had appeared before the Lands and Agriculture Portfolio Committee chaired by Gokwe Nembudziya MP Justice Mayor Wadyajena (Zanu PF) to give oral evidence on the state of financing and preparedness for the 2020 winter cropping season.
Mudzamiri and Makoni said they were representing Lands and Agriculture secreatry John Bhasera who had failed to turn up to give oral evidence. It also turned out that Mudzamiri, who introduced himself as the head of finance, is a pensioner.
“I am a pensioner at the moment, but I am a contractor and I am at the ministry up to the end of 2020,” Mudzamiri said.
Wadyajena asked them to explain why the ministry had not submitted documents of the contracts awarded to various companies involved in the winter wheat programme, but the pair claimed the documents were submitted to Parliament.
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“The information on the contracts that you submitted is insufficient. We ask you to go back and tell your ministry secretary (Bhasera) that we want him here and that he must bring the information on the contracts as Parliament business takes precedence over other business,” Wadyajena said before chucking the officials out of Parliament.
In the past, government officials have also been not forthcoming with information on command agriculture, raising suspicion that the programmes could have been used as conduits for corrupt activities.