BUSINESSMAN Wicknell Chivayo says protracted corruption investigations have caused international banks to red-flag him, resulting in significant lost business.
In an exclusive interview with the Zimbabwe Independent, Chivayo said probes linked to the controversial R1,1 billion (US$65,6 million) procurement of voting materials from South Africa’s Ren Form CC had inflicted what he described as irreparable reputational damage.
“Frankly speaking, any reputational damage is almost irreparable,” he said.
“The prolonged investigations, based on fabricated allegations, caused severe and irreparable damage to my business interests and personal reputation over the past two years.
“My business integrity was scandalised, leading certain local and international financial institutions to red-flag me as a potential risk, which resulted in substantial loss of business opportunities.”
Last week, Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) chairperson Michael Reza said the anti-graft body had failed to establish a link between Chivayo and the scandal and was closing its probe, citing the absence of contractual evidence tying him to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec)’s deal with Ren Form.
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However, while Zacc has publicly cleared him, sources close to the investigation told the Independent that “the matter is still very much alive in South Africa”.
Chivayo, who was convicted of fraud in 2004, said he had not received any formal communication from Zacc confirming his exoneration.
He also said he could not confirm whether South Africa’s Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, commonly known as the Hawks, had closed its parallel probe.
“Apart from the Zacc chairman’s televised interview, I have not yet received formal communication from Zacc on this subject matter,” Chivayo said.
“My focus has been on cooperating with the constitutional authorities in Zimbabwe. I have, however, through my lawyers, requested the Commission to communicate their official findings from their investigation.”
Reza did not respond to questions on whether Chivayo or South African authorities had been formally notified of Zacc’s decision.
At the time of publication, Hawks spokesperson Colonel Katlego Mogale — who had earlier confirmed the unit was investigating allegations of money laundering involving multi-million-dollar payments from Ren Form to firms linked to Chivayo — had not responded to further enquiries.
In May, Hawks national spokesperson Brigadier Thandi Mbambo told the Independent that the crack team was giving “top priority” to the investigations.
South Africa’s Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC)’s findings were also shared with the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau Investigations (FBI). Sources in Pretoria said Zacc had not formally communicated to its South African counterparts that “Chivayo was clean”.
One source close to the investigation stated: “Our probe, based on payments transferred by Zimbabwe’s Treasury to Ren Form CC and subsequently channelled to firms linked to Chivayo, is still alive. Investigations of this nature take long to conclude.”
The scandal surfaced after Zimbabwe’s Treasury paid Ren Form CC, which Zec handpicked without a public tender.
FIC subsequently red-flagged payments that Ren Form wired to companies linked to Chivayo, triggering money-laundering investigations by authorities in both countries.
Companies allegedly linked to Chivayo that received payments include Intratek Holdings, Dolintel Trading Enterprise, Edenbreeze, Asibambane Platinum Group and Agile Venture Capital.
FIC findings indicated that Ren Form had significantly inflated its invoices to Zec.
Ren Form CC had not responded to questions by the time of publication.