By Zvikomborero Parafini
Former permanent secretary in the ministry of Mines and Mineral Development Francis Gudyanga’s docket that was reportedly missing is now in the custody of the special unit prosecution, a Harare court has heard.
Representing the special unit prosecution, Venerandah Munyoro advised regional magistrate Hosea Mujaya that she is now in custody of the docket and was ready to proceed to trial contrary to lawyer Norman Mugiya’s submissions to the court that the docket was missing.
Mugiya applied for a postponement on behalf of the State on the last appearance after the special unit prosecutor Munyoro was in no show without any communication to the prosecution housed at Harare Magistrate’s court.
“The full docket is here with me contrary to the defence’s allegations that the docket had been stolen, however we haven’t served the defence with all the relevant State papers because he informed the court that he intended to make an application to have the matter heard under camera but hasn’t served us with anything in that regard,” said Munyoro.
In response, Mugiya told the court that according to law, the application can only be made after plea and they would be only be able to do so after they have been given the State papers.
“The application can only be made after plea, there’s no need to protect the State when it doesn’t want to be protected; we are ready to unpack the realities of this case,” said Mugiya.
It is the State’s case that from September 2014 to December 2015, Gudyanga, acting in his capacity as the secretary for Mines and sometimes as the board chairperson of Mineral Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ), misrepresented to MMCZ that the parastatal pays $1 6 29 500 to Glammer (Pvt) Ltd, a foreign company through a local agricultural company, Pedstock.
Gudyanga further misrepresented that the money be accounted to as dividends due to the stakeholder, in this case the government of Zimbabwe.
The State alleges MMCZ acting on the accused’s misrepresentation released the $1 629 500 to Pedstock when in fact the money was not being paid to the government as dividend, but for a private arrangement which had nothing to do with the parastatal.
The procedure is that dividends are paid to the secretary who, in turn, issues a receipt of acknowledgement.
But Gudyanga’s misrepresentation caused MMCZ to release and suffer a prejudice of $1 629 500 and nothing was recovered. H-Metro
