Aspiring councillor in land scandal

By Jeffrey Muvundusi

An aspiring MDC Alliance council candidate has been sucked in an alleged illegal sale of repossessed housing stands in Gwanda without council approval, according to a audit report.

Ward 3 aspiring candidate Tyson Moyo is already being probed by the Gwanda local authority in connection with illegal sale of three stands in the Hlalani Kuhle area.

The audit indicates that Moyo allegedly worked in cahoots with a municipality employee, Nomathamsanqa Sibanda, a secretary in the council’s housing department.

According to the report, Moyo and Sibanda illegally sold three repossessed stands on May 3, and pocketed the proceeds.

The illegal sale was done before the official date set by a council resolution for the stands to be put on sale.

Reads the audit report in part: “Audit questions: Why were the three stands sold before the official date? Was their sale urgent? What documents were used for verification? What role did Tyson Moyo and Mugadziri Shoko play in the sale of the above stands?”

One of the stands was allegedly sold to Sitshengisiwe Sibanda.

The report further indicates that Moyo went and showed Sibanda the stand after which a mobile money transfer of $2 400 was made as down payment.

However, in the audit report Sitshengisiwe argued she met the council secretary in the housing department in West Nicholson in May where she had visited a friend, a male nurse by the name Mugadzirwi Shoko, who brokered the deal.

“Sitshengisiwe Sibanda said the purchase of the stand had a claim of agents as follows, Mugadzirwi Shoko, Thembinkosi, Nicol Vudzi and Tyson Moyo. She said she didn’t get in touch with … Nomathamsanqa Sibanda but only got information that she was the lady who had access to the municipality stands. Sitshengisiwe claims she was shown the stand by Tyson Moyo,” read part of the audit report.

Hlalani Kuhle stands in the area have already claimed the scalp of deputy director of housing, Kenneth Khumalo, and on Tuesday last week, a full council meeting resolved that he be dismissed from his post.

Khumalo has since sued his bosses over what he termed unlawful dismissal and the matter is pending at the Bulawayo High Court. DailyNews