Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor Gideon Gono’s tiff with his former advisor Munyaradzi Kereke has sucked in Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Finance minister Tendai Biti.
Report by Everson Mushava, Chief Reporter
According to court papers and a letter written to Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) chairperson Denford Chirindo, Kereke sensationally claimed Gono, Tsvangirai and Biti fleeced the country of millions of dollars.
Gono’s former advisor claimed that he was fired by the central bank governor when he insisted that the RBZ should co-operate with police investigations against Tsvangirai and Biti.
Kereke claimed that Tsvangirai prejudiced the country of $1,5 million on the Premier’s official residence in Highlands, Harare while Biti allegedly withdrew $150 million from the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) account at the RBZ. He did not disclose what happened to the money.
All the clandestine activities were sanctioned and protected by Gono, alleged Kereke.
“On 11 November, 2009, Dr Gideon Gono casually wrote on a scrap piece of paper an instruction to a lower level Reserve Bank staff member to hurriedly make a transfer from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe of $1,5 million into an account at ZB Bank called TWRE Zim (Pvt) Limited, account number 4112-049163-200,” Kereke claimed.
“This amount was duly transferred from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe on 13 November 2009 and after the Reserve Bank lost control over this money, the funds were later abused by the Prime Minister and his cousin Hebson Makuvise (Zimbabwe’s ambassador to Germany).
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“As of today, the RBZ has not recovered its money. Dr Gideon Gono frantically refused to co-operate with the Zimbabwe Republic Police who were and are still investigating this serious fraud under reference number CID HQ ER 31/11.”
Kereke claimed that instead of co-operating with the police, Gono cooked up documents to protect both Tsvangirai and Biti, with the latter’s matter being investigated under reference CID HQ ER 03/2011. “The matter, which is under active investigation by the Zimbabwe Republic Police, is being frustrated by Dr Gideon Gono’s refusal to co-operate with the Zimbabwe Republic Police,” he alleged.
“During their audit of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe for 2009, BDO Kudenga and Co (chartered accountants) picked the irregularities on the IMF account in the books of the Reserve Bank, but still Dr Gideon Gono incomprehensibly brushed this serious matter aside.”
He added Gono and Biti were also failing to lobby for the removal of sanctions yet the country no longer owed the IMF any money.
“When Zimbabwe was allocated its Special Drawing Rights (SDR) in the equivalence of around $520 million in 2009, the IMF deducted SDR66 402 156 and stashed them in an escrow account, which amount is, in fact, equivalent to Zimbabwe’s total arrears with the IMF of around $140 million,” Kereke said.
He also made a litany of accusations against Gono and other senior RBZ officials.Gono has since sued Kereke for defamation.
Meanwhile, Kereke has also written to Central Intelligence Organisation boss Happyton Bonyongwe seeking an appointment with him to raise complaints against State spies, register his complaints against Gono and discuss his report to Zacc.
