By Tendai Biti
The Mbudzi Interchange, appropriately named the Trababalas Interchange is a major crime scene.
Built at a cost of US$88m , the Interchange is a shoddy vulgar sobriquet of raw looting & grandiose theft of public funds.
The US$88m is way out of line with comparative regional projects that have cost significantly less.
For instance SA’s Mount Edgecombe project , the biggest in Africa which cost US$70 m.
The project was not subject to international tender but instead was awarded to a local cartel & its associates, that has been at the center of of massive looting of public coffers since 2017.
The Cartel has been the biggest recipient of all Treasury Bills issued in this country and has been active in Command Agriculture mining , fuel, banking, financial services, buses, roads, hospitals, retail and general procurement .
There are major questions about the funding of the project. Claims have been made that the project was self financed through US$65m provided for by DNMZ the project advisor & US$ 26 m from construction consortium. There is evidence of Treasury support & use of the country’s Special Drawing Rights( SDRs).
These questions arise because of the predatory veil of opaqueness that has been the modus operandi of regime. Parliament must cause a forensic audit of this project & examining legal financial & engineering constructs of this pagoda. Corruption must stop.
