BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE
A HARARE court yesterday denied bail to suspended Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) chief executive officer David Chawota, but granted it to his co-accused, Transport ministry legal director, Angeline Karonga.
The two face allegations of corruptly concealing from their superiors their personal interest in a transaction.
Chawota, who is facing two other charges and was denied bail on another charge, appeared before magistrate Learnmore Mapiye.
In denying him bail, Mapiye ruled that a competent court had already ruled that he was not a proper candidate for bail because he had interfered with State witnesses.
Mapiye further said there was no guarantee that he would not interfere with State witnesses again.
But Karonga was granted $1 000 bail and ordered to surrender her passport, to report twice a week at CID Serious Fraud and to surrender title deeds of her home and not to interfere with State witnesses.
Mapiye remanded the matter to April 16 pending trial.
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The State alleges that Karonga and Chawota are registered co-directors and shareholders at Akodac Consultancy Services and in January 2012, the two allegedly made an application to the State Procurement Board (SPB) for their company to be on the approved list of suppliers of bulk and drummed bitumen so as to participate in government tenders.
The SPB is said to have approved the application.
The court heard that Chawota and Karonga proceeded to register Akodac Consultancy Services with the Zimbabwe National Road Administration as a bitumen supplier.
It is alleged that Chawota and Karonga went on to carry out transactions for the supply of cat mix and stable 60, which are products for the manufacture of bitumen on 24 occasions from January 2012 until August 2013.
The State alleged that the two failed to disclose their personal interest to their principal, the Transport ministry.
The court heard that Chawota and Karonga were paid $1 234 004 and shared proceeds without disclosing their personal interests in the transactions with the intention of deceiving the ministry. Moses Mapanga appeared for the State.
