HARARE City Council’s former business ventures manager, Gadzamoyo Dewa, has filed a $1,5 million lawsuit against his former bosses for physically and psychologically attacking him after he threatened to expose them for allegedly looting EasiPark’s coffers.
BY CHARLES LAITON
In summons issued on March 8 this year, Dewa said he worked for the City of Harare as an administrative assistant responsible for the health services and was then promoted to business ventures manager, a position he held until he resigned at the end of 2008.
He claimed that during his tenure at EasiPark, council’s top brass allegedly plundered money generated by the business unit and made him their sacrificial lamb.
“Plaintiff (Dewa) discovered that money/profit that was supposed to be used to repair roads and bus termini and to pay employees was looted by city fathers and Town House officials. This was done through the corrupt conduit, which was the general manager, who diverted money to an account where they would share the loot,” Dewa said.
“Before resigning, plaintiff had helped in shaping the ideas of the joint venture concept in the city parking utility. Three years after leaving City of Harare, the city called plaintiff back to come and represent its interest in the EasiPark joint venture.
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“Plaintiff discovered that there was fraud happening at the City of Harare’s client and was beaten by City of Harare’s client (general manager, Alois Masepe) leading to the amputation of his right hand index finger.”
The former manager said instead of helping him, the City of Harare, which had employed him to represent its interest in the joint business venture, sprang to the defence of the general manager to save him from facing disciplinary action.
“For six years, plaintiff was subject to torture and even denied terminal benefits. Communications sent to the town clerk were ignored and communications sent to the mayor were also being ignored. Instead, City of Harare was working hard to distort the information, so as to permanently hide the scandal in the City of Harare from the intelligence of the State,” Dewa said.
“Today I am living like a pauper due to the actions of the City of Harare on my life. I am claiming compensation from City of Harare and its parking business entities, to the tune of $1 500 000 for the gross abuse on my right to life, my right to human dignity, torture and cruelty, inhuman and degrading treatment which I suffered.”
Dewa also said at one point, the City of Harare, through the actions of Masepe, wanted to make him a sacrificial lamb for the scandals committed by the management committee.
“For standing firm against corruption, there was a time when the general manager had to hire touts from the streets and he wanted them to throw me down from the fourth floor of Julius Nyerere Parkade,” he said.