Harare Mayor, Jacob Mafume has said Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) councillors are maintaining that the local government authority won’t pay the money it owes to Geogix BV as per the Pomona Waste to energy deal.
The deal was signed between Harare City Council and Geogenix BV, a Netherlands company fronted in Zimbabwe by Dilesh Nguwaya who is said to have close links with the first family.
Mafume dismissed as false, the reports by The Herald that the councillors had retreated from their stance and eventually endorsed “the deal yesterday.”
CCC councillors have for weeks now been pushing for the reversal of the agreement with the Netherlands-based firm, Geogenix, which they say Local Government and Public Works Minister, July Moyo imposed on the local government authority.
Norton MP (independent), Temba Mliswa, claims, July Moyo, collected a 10% commission on the Pomona Waste to Energy Deal for his role.
The Herald published an article this Tuesday suggesting that CCC councillors had decided not to continue fighting. Reads part of the article:
THE opposition CCC-led Harare City Council yesterday made a volte-face on the €304 million Pomona Waste to Energy deal after weeks of politicking trying to reverse an agreement they had earlier sanctioned with the Netherlands-based firm, Geogenix.
The council proposed to fund the Pomona deal, which has national project status, with Devolution Funds.
Harare City Council officials carried out due diligence on the project after being treated to more than 10 days’ stay at a luxurious hotel in the exquisite City of Legnano, Italy, where they travelled to last year.
The councillors had a torrid time endorsing the deal yesterday as they spent more than three hours in caucus before a special council meeting which was scheduled to start at 11 am but began three hours later.
Chairing the meeting, Mayor Jacob Mafume read a letter from Local Government and Public Works Minister July Moyo rescinding the city’s resolutions to suspend its contract with Geogenix BV on the Pomona Waste to Energy project.
In response, Mafume said the article did not reflect what transpired. He said:
This is false. We read the letter as we are required by law to do. We stand by our resolutions not to pay this amount. We will not be part of this contrary to public morals contract.
The Pomona dumpsite waste-to-energy project is expected to generate up to 22MW of electricity and create at least 300 jobs.
The US$344 million deal requires Harare to pay US$22 000 per day to Geogenix BV, an amount CC councillors are saying is too high for a council that has been failing to provide required public goods and services due to a lack of adequate resources.