Tshabangu, Matuke brawl over ZEC ‘toiletgate’ deal

Zim Now Writer

Matabeleland North province Senator, Sengezo Tshabangu got into an exchange of words with the Minister of State for Presidential affairs Lovemore Matuke, when the former demanded answers on the payment of dues for portable toilets and translucent light boxes for V11 forms by the Ministry of Finance, while Matuke tried to shoot the question down, as allegations.

Senator Tshabangu was speaking during the minister’s question time in the upper house, where he questioned the reason behind the Ministry of Finance’s settlement of an invoice of over US$9 million for procurement of portable toilets and translucent light boxes for V12 forms that were never delivered.

It is his assertion that the Ministry should have halted the payment seeing that nothing was delivered, and the election days had passed.

“My question is, why did the Ministry of Finance settle the full invoice amounting to over US$9 million which went through their Banker CBZ on the 7th of September, 2023 for the procurement of portable toilets and translucent light boxes for V11 forms that were never delivered,” asked Tshabangu.

In a bid to disregard Tshabangu’s question and motion, Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Lovemore Matuke labelled them as just allegations and unsubstantial.

“The allegations are not substantial. We cannot deal with Information which is not substantiated. What the honourable Senator is saying has no proof. I thought we could research more on that because there is nothing like that happened. It never came in the public domain, those are simply allegations,” the minister argued.

However, Tshabangu insisted that allegations are the base to investigations on cases, noting that taxpayers’ monies have to be transparently used.

“We build cases on allegations. The nature of criminal code is that you build a case from an allegation. This is in the public domain and we are a Senate, we are talking about Chapter 12 of the Constitution.

“If it is an allegation, it is an allegation; they should come in this House and respond to these allegations that we pose to them because they are there in the public domain.

“We are talking about taxpayers’ money which is about US$9 million. If it is an allegation, ZEC has to respond. The Ministry of Finance has to respond beyond any reasonable doubt that is an allegation because it is there in the public domain,” Tshabangu added.

Robert Mazungunye, Deputy Minister in the ministry of Justice, waded into the issue, noting that there is need for time to research on the matter.

"As far as I am concerned, I feel that question is a specific question, which might require time to go back and research more on it and may be if we do our findings, then we can properly respond to that matter. At the moment, there are still allegations which are not substantiated as has been said already but we may need to go and verify," said Mazungunye.

Reports suggest that the 2 000 non-flushable toilets, were pegged at US$3 800 per unit, while the retail price for such in South Africa is US$300 at retail.