Harare Regional magistrate Vongai Muchuchuti-Guwiriro acquitted former Harare City Town Clerk Tendai Mahachi of corruption charges related to the US$80 million Airport Road upgrade and construction project.
The allegations stemmed from a 2008 Memorandum of Agreement between the City of Harare and Augur Investments, a Ukrainian-based company, which the State claimed was signed without going to tender.
Mahachi, represented by Admire Rubaya, maintained his innocence, stating that the decision to engage Augur Investments was a collective one made by the council’s executive committee.
He argued that the committee had the delegated authority to enter into a joint venture partnership with Augur Ltd for various development projects, including middle-income housing, hotel development, and the Airport Road upgrade.
Rubaya argued that the memorandum of understanding was not entered into by the Mahachi, but he signed it on the instruction of the City of Harare’s ultimate authority then.
He said he was neither a member of the Executive Committee nor did he have a vote.
“It is critical to state that the Accused person was just an employee of the City of Harare and was not a member of the Executive Committee, the Commission and or the Council which in turn would ordinarily make the decisions on whether to engage any service providers or not.
“The Accused person cannot possibly be found to be criminally liable regards signing documents on behalf of council more so where there is an enabling resolution to that effect.
“He was just like a spectator but now he is being asked to account for the decision to enter into the memorandum of Understanding in circumstances where he was not part of the decision-makers,” Rubaya argued.
He said the committee engaged the firm and formed a joint venture company and that the project even became national hence there was no need for going to tender.
“The accused person is not the one who engaged Augur Investments Limited but the Council of the city of Harare.
“The decision to engage was not made by the Accused person for he did not have a vote in the Executive Committee meeting dated the 18th of June 2007.
“The accused person was never a member of either the Executive Committee neither was he ever a member of the Commission which was running the affairs of the city of Harare. The Accused person had no voting rights thus he did not make any decisions,” his lawyer argued.
Magistrate Muchuchuti-Guwiriro cleared Mahachi of the allegations saying the State had not disclosed his duties and what he was not supposed to do, adding that Mahachi had managed to show his innocence by providing documentary evidence.
The court also indicated that the State witnesses had not supported the case with the third witness Dr Mafoti who chaired the council executive committee at the time exonerating him from the allegations.
“Dr Mafoti who was one of the Executive Committee members clearly exonerated all the Accused persons regarding the charges at hand.
“He conceded that the Executive Committee which sat on the 18th of June 2007 which meeting he chaired is the one which passed resolutions relating to the formation of a Joint Venture company between Augur and City of Harare for the upgrading and construction of the Airport Road,” the magistrate said.
