Zimbabwe: Nyabonda Speaks Out

Source from:  All Africa 01/24/2011

Embattled former Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers Union (ZCFU) president, Wilson Nyabonda, has rejected results of an internal audit linking him to financial mismanagement at ZCFU. Nyabonda said last week he did not recognise the inquiry because unauthorised members had been roped into the commission of inquiry without his knowledge. Last week, The Financial Gazette reported that the former ZCFU boss had fallen out with the organisation's national council after two investigations - the Tererai Mugabe-led commission of inquiry and an audit by chartered accountants, Baker Tilly Gwatidzo - had exposed financial mismanagement, blamed on him. The audits said thousands of United States dollars, among them a US$90 000 grant from the European Union (EU), had been abused. About US$138 000 had been lost through a futile stand deal. But in an interview with The Financial Gazette, Nyabonda declared he did not only recognise the commission of inquiry, but had been horrified by the results of the investigations, which he claimed were "so" inaccurate. Looking relaxed, Nyabonda, who has been accused of leading the ZCFU with an iron fist during his presidency that ended with a vote of no-confidence in December last year, maintained that publication of the report had given him an opportunity to "make money". "Zvino ndatomeka marika, (I will make money out of the report)," Nyabonda said following a press conference at the Zimbabwe Industry Tobacco Auction Centre (ZITAC). He controls a significant shareholding in the tobacco dealer, which is currently pitted in a nail-biting disagreement with the Boka family, who had been leasing the massive facility to ZITAC. "Matoita kuti ndimeke mari navo nenyaya yamawaridza mupepa iya (You have created an avenue for me to make money out of the commission by publishing the story)," he added. "The committee that we had set up included Nherera, Davison Mugabe and Tererai Mugabe. But that other group, I don't know where they went on to get them. Ninety percent of their findings were inaccurate, the information is so inaccurate," Nyabonda told The Financial Gazette. At the centre of the storm between the ZCFU and Nyabonda, which triggered the vote of no confidence in him, was the proposed US$2,6 million 10-storey building to house the organisation's headquarters in Harare. The inquiry had concluded that while US$138 000 had been expended on the stand, investigators had failed to locate the land. The controversial stand has sparked outrage within the ZCFU, already paralysed by internal strife triggered by disputed polls last month. Meanwhile, the commission of inquiry had recommended that ZCFU director, Phillip Tavuyanago, be suspended. It had also recommended that swift action to rope in the Criminal Investigations Department be taken to bring to book "culprits" accused of looting the ZCFU. They recommended that Nyabonda repays, with interest, the ZCFU US$8 000 given to him to repair his personal car following an accident, or face legal action. They also said US$4 000 given to Peter Gambara, a former director in the late Vice President Joseph Msika's office, now ZCFU chief economist, be recovered with interest. Enditem