BREAKING NEWS | Charges Dropped in Harare Streetlight Fraud Case: Wicknell Chivayo’s Alleged Associates Walk Free
Harare – 11 June 2025
In a development raising fresh questions about the selective application of justice in Zimbabwe, the State has withdrawn fraud charges against Moses Mpofu and Mike Chimombe, close alleged business associates of controversial tenderpreneur Wicknell Chivayo. The two men were accused of fraudulently obtaining a streetlighting tender from the Harare City Council — a case that had been pending trial for nearly a year.
The trial, scheduled to begin this week, collapsed after the State abruptly withdrew the charges without providing any reasons, effectively letting the pair off the hook for now.
“The withdrawal was sudden and unexplained,” said a court official familiar with the matter. “It’s deeply frustrating for those who expected accountability.”
A Pattern of Immunity?
Both Mpofu and Chimombe had spent over 11 months in remand prison on the allegations, but now walk free in this particular case. Their release has sparked outrage on social media, where many have accused the State of shielding politically connected individuals from the full force of the law.
The case was widely viewed as part of a broader crackdown on public sector tender fraud, with the Harare lighting contract seen as a key example of inflated pricing and irregular procurement — hallmarks of Zimbabwe’s worsening corruption crisis.
Remaining Cases Still Hanging
Despite this legal victory, Mike Chimombe still faces charges in a separate case involving an US$87 million goat tender, while Moses Mpofu is also still answering to that matter, along with another fraud case relating to a bio-gas project with the Harare City Council. Both matters are still before the courts, but insiders say the goat tender case, currently before Justice Kwenda, is also showing signs of collapse.
Legal analysts say the string of withdrawals and faltering prosecutions could suggest that either the charges were politically motivated, or that the National Prosecuting Authority is incapable — or unwilling — to pursue corruption cases involving ZANU-PF elites.
Wicknell Chivayo’s Shadow Looms
While Chivayo himself is not formally named in this case, Mpofu and Chimombe have long been associated with him in various controversial business dealings, including the failed Gwanda solar project and suspicious procurement transactions linked to the Ministry of Finance and Presidential Office.
“This decision casts a very dark cloud over Zimbabwe’s anti-corruption credentials,” said one legal observer, Gerald Hokwa “We are seeing a system that only prosecutes those without connections,” he alleged.
Calls are now growing for the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) and Auditor General to release findings on all state tenders awarded to companies and individuals linked to this circle — including the recently exposed Betterbrands Petroleum deal, which saw US$4.2 million paid out of Treasury with no clarity on value delivered.
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DEVELOPING: ZimEye is tracking developments on the remaining tenders, including the goat and biogas cases, and Chivayo’s growing influence in political and business circles.