CAAZ boss in court over corruption

CIVIL Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) chief executive Mr David Chawota yesterday appeared in court over allegations of authorising payment of $56 042,76 for promotional material from his company without doing a comparative analysis.

Chawota, who is also a co-director and shareholder at LL Promotions Pvt (Ltd), which is in the business of designing and printing, was facing charges of criminal abuse of office when he appeared before Harare magistrate Mrs Vongai Muchuchuti Guwuriro

Mrs Guwuriro granted Chawota $700 bail and ordered him to surrender his passport to the clerk of court.

She ordered him to reside at his given address until the matter is finalised.

The State indicated that CAAZ’s policy is to acquire its promotional material from several companies on a comparative analysis type of acquisition, with the company offering the cheapest prices being preferred.

During the period extending 2010 to 2015, the State alleged that CAAZ acquired promotional material in form of branded golf t-shirts, caps, calendars and executive diaries from LL Promotions Pvt (Ltd), which is one of its approved suppliers without doing a comparative analysis.

It was alleged that Chawota, as the accounting officer, authorised payments totalling $28 021,38 from CAAZ’s CBZ account number 01122535010010 into LL Promotions Pvt (Ltd)’s CBZ account number 01120055500030 on separate occasions.

It was stated that $4 579,88 was paid in December 2011, $13 582,50 on November 27, 2012 and $9 859 in January 2015.

The State alleged that Chawota authorised all the payments without disclosing his personal interest in LL Promotions Pvt (Ltd).

Mr Zivanai Macharaga from the Special Prosecuting Unit appeared for the State.