Source: City council property at risk of seizure over US$105 000 debt – herald
Trust Freddy
Check Point Desk
THE Harare City Council (HCC) is facing possible seizure of its property after failing to settle a US$105 000 debt owed to 11 former board members of its now-defunct subsidiary, Harare Quarry (Pvt) Ltd, raising questions over financial mismanagement and governance in the city’s enterprises.
The liability stems from unpaid board sitting allowances dating back several years, which the council inherited after taking direct control of Harare Quarry earlier this year.
The takeover followed the company’s failure to account for a US$4,5 million loan advanced to it by the council.
Among those owed are HCC director of works Mr Isaiah Chawatama and chief engineer Gerald Mutume, as well as former board chairperson Mr Oswell Binha, who is not a council employee.
Legal action
Five of the former board members have since taken legal action and secured court judgments and writs of execution, paving the way for attachment of municipal property should the city fail to pay.
According to a confidential Business Committee report dated September 11, 2025, the council’s acting human capital director recommended that the city urgently settle the debt to prevent attachment of the local authority’s assets.
“. . . settling of claims that the City of Harare inherited from the Harare Quarry (Pvt) Ltd in order to avoid attachment of the property which City of Harare was a significant shareholder and authorising the acting human capital director, acting finance director and acting chamber secretary to engage the board members in order to come up with payment plans to settle the claims giving priority to claims already reinforced by court orders,” reads part of the report.
The debt became council’s responsibility when Harare Quarry was put under the Department of Works.
Former board members insist they are legitimately owed their allowances, arguing that they fulfilled their duties and even initiated a forensic audit that uncovered alleged abuse of the US$4,5 million loan.
Despite the court rulings, divisions have emerged among councillors over whether the city should honour the payments.
Some councillors argue that council employees on the board were already being paid salaries and, therefore, had no right to claim additional allowances for sitting on a council-owned entity’s board.
“The committee discussed the matter, expressing concern at the practice whereby employees were given responsibility over council business and claiming payment for the same. It also discussed the performance of the claimants (former board members) as indicated in this meeting and queried where the payments could come from as the institution Harare Quarry (Pvt) Ltd was not performing,” added the report.
Initially, councillors proposed forming a special committee to seek legal advice on possibly overturning the court judgments.
However, with writs of execution already issued, the committee later resolved to engage the claimants and negotiate a payment plan to prevent attachment of council property.
Town House officials are now trying to reach out to the claimants to develop staggered payment arrangements, prioritising those backed by court orders.
When contacted, Mr Chawatama referred all inquiries to the Town Clerk’s Office.
Acting Town Clerk Engineer Phakamile Mabhena Moyo could not be reached for comment, while city spokesperson Mr Stanley Gama did not respond to questions despite promising to do so.
A recent inquiry into Harare Quarry’s operations found that the company’s governance model was deeply flawed, citing the dominance of City of Harare employees on the board as a major contributor to its collapse.
The commission concluded that the City of Harare was effectively both regulator and operator of the entity, creating conflict of interest and weakening oversight.
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