COH's Recycled Hosiah Chisango Cartel Accused of L...

COH's Recycled Hosiah Chisango Cartel Accused of Looting with Brazen Impunity

Philemon Jambaya- Zim Now Editor

Emerging details paint a picture of how suspended Harare Town Clerk Hosea Chisango and a cabal of senior officials allegedly transformed the city council into a criminal enterprise, operating with brazen impunity.

Manipulating departments, bribing investigators, and systematically looting public funds are wmong the laundry list of allegations against the high ranking city officers.

At the heart of this alleged scandal is the controversial return of a group of publicly disgraced officials now occupying key positions within the council.

These include the newly appointed Acting Director of Urban Planning Samuel Nyabeza, newly appointed Security Manager Obeylaw Moyo, Chief Surveyor Munyaradzi Bowa, allegedly self-appointed Executive Assistant to the Town Clerk Matthew Marara, Principal Housing Planner Edgar Dzehonye, Director of Housing Addmore Nhekairo, and Marketing Head Collen Tongoona.

Sources have told ZimNow that these individuals—previously facing suspensions, criminal charges, and allegations of siphoning millions from council coffers—were reinstated without proper council resolutions or legal ratification.

The alleged architect of this audacious maneuver is than Hosea Chisango.

In 2023, Chisango reportedly "bounced back" into his position in unlclear circumtsances and allegedly orchestrated the quiet reinstatement of the other officials. Tongoona, Nyabeza, Bowa, Dzehonye, and Nhekairo, all implicated in significant land fraud and embezzlement cases, were inexplicably welcomed back into their posts despite their criminal cases remaining active.

Adding to the eyebrow-raising appointments, Matthew Marara—who previously resigned under a cloud of corruption allegations—now operates as the Town Clerk’s seemingly unchecked right-hand man.

Collen Tongoona, reportedly on the run from authorities within the Metropolitan Police Department, was rewarded with a role as the Head of Marketing within the Housing Department after evading law enforcement. City of Harare has a housing waiting list of five figures and has no need for an elaborate marketing of its offerings as demand always overwhelms supply.

Insiders describe this group as a “recycled cartel,” strategically positioned to seize control of cash-rich departments, most notably the city’s bustling markets.

The sources say that a comprehensive audit of the daily cash collections from these markets, amounting to thousands of dollars will reveal outright criminal collusion.

Tongoona, now embedded within the Housing Department, reportedly oversees a chaotic landscape of informal market stalls and illegal land allocations—effectively funneling cash into a parallel system that bypasses official audits and financial oversight entirely.

Credibilty to the allegations is strengthened by reports that Chisango and Marara have expressed vehement opposition to the adoption of an Enterprise Resource Planning system.

This software, designed to automate financial processes and eliminate the need for extensive cash handling, is reportedly viewed as a direct threat to their alleged revenue streams.

“They’ve sabotaged the ERP for years because automation would end their illicit revenue streams,” a senior IT official revealed. “Every day without it, (means funds are stolen with impunity). Doink [Mayor Jacob Mafume] tried to intervene, but he is a dwarf compared to these rich directors.”

The recently deposed Acting Human Capital Director, Bozman Matengarufu, is also embroiled in the unfolding scandal. He allegedly continues to suppress whistleblowers and protect a "secret payroll" that insiders claim drains a staggering $30,000 monthly to Chisango, Marara, and their allies.

Despite holding a temporary role, Matengarufu was reportedly aggressively lobbying to fast-track the appointment of a substantive Finance Director—a position wielding immense influence over council funds.

Insiders allege that Matengarufu, acting in collusion with Chisango, sought to bypass standard recruitment procedures to handpick a candidate aligned with their interests. “They wanted to ram through their preferred candidate without scrutiny,” a senior official disclosed. “Matengarufu, as an acting Human Capital manager, has no authority to exclusively drive such a critical appointment, but he was exploiting his position to entrench their cabal.”

Critics argue that this rushed process was deliberately designed to install a pliant Finance Director who would readily approve dubious expenditures and obscure financial trails linked to the numerous land scandals plaguing the council.

Adding a bizarre twist to the unfolding drama, when his rotational tenure ended, the reportedly embittered Matengarufu allegedly launched a “scorched earth” campaign.

This included accusing the Mayor of colluding in corruption including a claim under oath before a Commission chaired by Justice Maphios Cheda that he had been “poisoned” by rivals. Investigators, however, have reportedly found no evidence to support his sensational allegations, with one insider dismissing it as “the tantrum of a man denied his bribe.”

The deposed acting director has also reportedly been paying himself exorbitant sums equivalent to a substantive director’s salary while in the acting role, flouting council financial protocols and further draining public coffers.

Concerns have also been raised regarding the deliberate dismantling of the crucial Department of Works—a move insiders suggest was a key tactic to neuter accountability.

Director Engineer Zvenyika Chawatama, known for his strict disciplinary approach and zero-tolerance stance on graft, was reportedly stripped of his authority and relegated to trivial tasks such as pothole patching.

Simultaneously, Samuel Nyabeza, entangled in multiple pending court cases linked to land fraud, was inexplicably handed control of the Urban Planning Department.

Insiders allege this was a calculated move to sideline Chawatama, whose integrity posed a significant threat to the alleged cabal. “Nyabeza’s promotion is a reward for loyalty,” a source alleged. “They’ve turned urban planning into a den of thieves, and Chawatama’s demotion sends a clear message: if you oppose us, we’ll bury you.”

In a move described by one source as “putting a fox in charge of the henhouse,” former police commissioner Obeylaw Moyo was elevated to the position of Security Manager. Many within the council believe this role was specifically created to whitewash corruption dockets.

Moyo, himself implicated as a “chief surveyor” in sprawling land scandals, has allegedly used his newfound authority to suppress ongoing investigations, destroy crucial evidence, and facilitate the return of other disgraced figures like Munyaradzi Bowa. “Moyo’s job isn’t to protect the council; it’s to protect the cartel,” a whistleblower claimed.

Perhaps the most damning revelations revolve around the role of Lorimac, the consultancy firm entrusted with conducting a critical job evaluation exercise for the City of Harare.

Documents seen by this publication reveal how Lorimac’s ostensibly independent evaluation process was allegedly weaponized by Chisango and Marara to create phantom positions, illegally inflate grades, and shield their allies—all while ordinary council workers faced relentless persecution under a rigged system.

The job evaluation exercise, commissioned to Lorimac with the aim of standardizing roles and ensuring fairness across council departments, allegedly became the linchpin of a sprawling corruption network beyond Lorimac’s original mandate strictly covering grades 5 to 16, as stipulated by the National Employment Council (NEC).

Chisango and Marara, reportedly acting without any legal authority, colluded to manipulate the process, directing Lorimac to illegally expand its scope to include grades 1 to 4—a move explicitly prohibited under NEC guidelines. This illegal expansion allegedly allowed the duo to fraudulently create positions such as “Assistant Town Clerk” and “Executive Head Public Safety Manager,” roles that never existed in Lorimac’s original framework.

Lorimac’s final report, a copy of which has been obtained by this publication, exposes glaring discrepancies.

The “phantom” positions, seemingly tailor-made for Marara’s benefit, were retroactively inserted into the evaluation without proper council approval or transparency.

“Lorimac’s involvement was supposed to bring credibility, but Chisango and Marara turned it into a tool for patronage,” a whistleblower alleged. “They abused Lorimac’s work to justify promoting cronies and burying land scandals.”

Chisango and Marara also stand accused of illegally transferring the Head of Public Safety Section to the Town Clerk’s office and ousting Mr. Jabulani Duve as Head of Industrial Relations.

This maneuver was allegedly designed to halt disciplinary hearings targeting their allies, including Nyabeza, Bowa, Tongoona, Chiendambuya, Dzehonye, Tayerera, and Nhekairo.

While these individuals reportedly saw their suspensions unlawfully reversed and their cases buried, low-ranking workers faced ruthless prosecution under the same code of conduct.

A ministerial order explicitly barred employees with pending court cases from returning to work, yet Chisango has repeatedly defied it, reinstating his tainted allies without proper documentation or council resolutions. Lorimac’s compromised job evaluation allegedly allowed land scandal suspects to evade justice entirely.

“Cases not involving land were pursued, but the moment land fraud was implicated, everything stopped,” an insider revealed. This blatant double standard reportedly triggered explosive clashes between Marara and Jabulani Duve, who demanded accountability only to be systematically sidelined.

The implications of these revelations are staggering.Workers are now reportedly demanding answers from Lorimac, questioning whether the firm turned a blind eye to the manipulation or was actively coerced into compliance.

“This isn’t just about corruption; it’s about a reputable company’s evaluation being exploited to destroy meritocracy,” fumed a Local Government official.

Pressure is now mounting for a comprehensive forensic audit of Lorimac’s role in this alleged scandal and a thorough probe into the activities of Chisango and his alleged cabal.

Council spokesperson Stanley Gama could not be reached for comment. However, a senior official within his office, speaking anonymously due to fear of reprisal, issued a scathing rebuke:

“How do you explain suspended officials waltzing back into offices, creating fake roles, and looting millions without a single resolution? They’ve turned departments into ATMs, markets into cash laundries, and land records into fiction.

The ERP system is their nightmare because sunlight kills roaches. Until higher authorities stop pretending not to smell the rot, residents will keep suffering.”