Zimbabwe Power Company managing director, Noah Gwariro has told the court that it is normal for the parastatal to disregard tender procedures if it receives instructions from a minister.
Testifying in the case of former Energy minister Samuel Undenge who is facing charges of criminal abuse of office, Gwariro said,
I don’t see any problem with the letter of instructions from the honourable minister Undenge as we are used to working with instruction from the policyholders. We have the example of Essar Company at Ziscosteel.
We did not observe tender procedures, but it came as an instruction. We also gave Essar Company a contract to work at Munyati Power Station without a tender, but it was an instruction from the minister.
Undenge is alleged to have ordered the power company to enlist the services of Fruitful Communications for its public relations despite the fact that it has its own public relations department.
The trial is still ongoing.
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