Zimra pair suspended

THE Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) has suspended two senior officials in connection with a recent attempt by employees to siphon nearly $2 million from the authority.

Finance deputy director Ms Everjoy Maniwa and head of e-cargo tracking system Mr Alois Manhire were suspended to facilitate the investigations, sources familiar with the developments have said.

This comes following the suspension of nine other officials in connection with the matter.

Last week, ZIMRA said the attempt to siphon nearly $2 million from the authority’s fiscal accounts was exposed after an alert official in the IT security department discovered a suspicious transfer from a ZIMRA account into a bank account.

No details have been provided on the intended beneficiary of the fraudulent transfer.

“The issue relates to the $2,3 million that almost got stolen recently,” said an official who requested anonymity because is not authorised to talk to the media.

ZIMRA head of communications Mr Francis Chimanda confirmed the suspensions.

“ZIMRA confirms that two managers were recently suspended for various reasons,” he said. “The allegations levelled against the managers are still under investigation. We are, therefore, not in a position to give full details, as investigations are still ongoing.”

ZIMRA Commissioner-General Ms Faith Mazani said last week that the investigation was meant to establish the motive behind the suspicious transaction.

“We are happy that it is actually our staff that identified the issue and we are happy that the efforts we are putting in place are bearing fruits,” she said.

“We would like to assure the nation and all the valued customers that ZIMRA continues to be dedicated to its mission of revenue collection and protecting public resources.”

Those suspended, if cleared, would retain their jobs while those found on the wrong side would be dealt with in terms of the law, added Ms Mazani.

She said the national revenue collector was working “flat out” to establish the underlying cause to protect taxpayers’ funds and safeguarding all revenue due to the State.

Ms Mazani said ZIMRA remained committed to promoting economic development through efficient revenue collection.