Audit sniffs out beer levy abuse Kombi chase costs city $173 000

HARARE city councillors have ordered officials to reimburse $293 000 that was taken from the traditional beer levy account and used for other purposes.

Beer levy funds are mainly used to procure community boreholes and upgrading other social infrastructure, but the accounting of the assets was not clear as no separate accounts were being maintained.

This was discovered after the city’s Audit Committee requested that an investigation be done to establish the amount of traditional beer levy remitted to City of Harare between January 2016 and November 2018.

The investigation was also done to establish the number of commercial breweries that should be remitting money to council.

According to Audit Committee minutes, the levy funds were administered in the Standard Chartered Bank account and the closing balance was $1 494 685 as at November 20, 2018.

The audit revealed that $292 931 was misused during the period under review and that currently there were no separate accounts as stipulated by the Urban Councils Act.

“Currently, there was no separate account maintained by council as required by S.I.420 of 1984, Section 2 which requires the annual preparation of Trading, Profit and Loss income and expenditure accounts and balance sheet of controlled liquor,” read the minutes.

Councillors resolved that the acting finance director Mr Stanley Ndemera complies with the provisions of the Traditional Beer Levy Act at all times and that the $292 931 be reimbursed from the city’s main account.

Council also agreed that the two HARARE City Council has been ordered to pay over $173 000 damages to a man who was injured in an accident involving municipal police and a commuter omnibus driver during a high-speed chase.

Mr Phineas Mashoko was not involved in the chase, but was struck by the fleeing motorist when municipal officers tried to throw spikes to apprehend the driver of the commuter omnibus, Casper Sabau.

Mr Mashoko, who was walking on the pavement, sustained severe injuries resulting in the amputation of his leg.

He sued council, the driver and owner of the commuter omnibus Mr Nyasha Mavhima, claiming $173 575, 79 in damages arising from the injuries he sustained.

Harare opposed the claim, but High Court judge Justice Pisirayi Kwenda ruled in favour of Mr Mashoko after a fully contested civil trial.

He ordered council and the kombi owner to pay for the special damages sought by Mr Mashoko, plus interest at the prescribed rate.

In his ruling, Justice Kwenda noted the harm posed to the commuting public and other persons in and

accounts be maintained separately as required by the law and that sales return supporting levies paid are submitted by commercial breweries. The beer levy should not be part of the general revenue of a local authority and must only be around the scene of the accident from the high-speed chase in which Sabau and the municipal police were engaged.

The judge found Mr Mavhima liable for the damages in that he was grossly negligent in getting involved in a highspeed chase in a crowded area.

“He created a menace to the public safety when he took off at a high speed in a crowded area in a desperate attempt to evade arrest,” he said.

Justice Kwenda found the municipality police under the charge of Mr Michael Bota grossly negligent too in engaging in a speed chase with a commuter omnibus driver who was clearly determined to escape.

“They were negligent in throwing the spike,” he said. “A reasonable person would have foreseen the harm inherent in the high-speed chase and worse still throwing a spike in a crowded area.”

During the trial, the council tried to conceal the identity of its officers who were involved in the high-speed chase and ended up giving an incredible version of events.

However, the court was left with Mr Mashoko’s declaration which was incontrovertible to decide on the suit.

Mr Bota and his team fled the scene when the accident occurred.

used for the welfare of the community as approved by the Minister and can only be used to fund the provision of services that include water and sanitation, health, education, recreation and other related interventions.