Two of Robert Mugabe’s allies and former cabinet ministers of Zimbabwe have been charged with corruption.
Lawyers for former foreign minister Walter Mzembi and ex-energy minister Samuel Undenge said they were charged on Friday with “criminal abuse of office”.
The two served under the former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and are part of a group of former government officials the current government is targeting in a crackdown on corrupt officials.
Reuters reported that Undenge is accused of issuing a $12,650 contract without due tender to a company that did no work. Mzembi and Undenge were both granted bail on Saturday with their trial will resume on January 22.
The two former cabinet ministers have denied wrongdoing.
Mzembi’s lawyer, Job Sikhala told reporters outside the court that “We are going to make an application for an exception to the charge because the charges that my client is facing are ridiculous.”
Already former finance minister Ignatius Chombo is facing charges of defrauding the central bank over a decade ago. He also denies wrongdoing but is currently on bail after being detained for days.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa took over from Robert Mugabe last year after the 93 year old resigned following a military takeover. The Army had said at the time of the military operation that it was targeting corrupt individuals around the President.
Source: Africafeeds.com
