BY NYARADZO CHITUNGO
Alpha Housing Development Private Limited Director Jonathan Gapare, appeared in court on Wednesday facing allegations of unlawfully selling hundreds of residential stands allegedly prejudicing the Beitbridge Municipality of about US$4.74 million.
Gapare and his company represented by Zivanai Vhimisai, were arrested by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) on Thursday (September 24) and they appeared before Beitbridge magistrate Takudzwa Gwazemba.
Gapare and the company were remanded out of custody to October 16, on US$400 bail.
The State led by Willbrought Muleya alleges that Gapare and Alpha Housing Development sold 632 residential stands on land that the company had been entrusted to develop under an agreement with the municipality.
The matter dates back to July 2015 when the Beitbridge Town Council resolved to allocate virgin land in the town’s high-density suburbs to Alpha Housing Development to prepare a layout plan and develop low-cost housing.
The parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in November 2015 under which Alpha was expected to service 600 stands with roads, sewer and water infrastructure and construct 500 low-cost houses.
In return, the company would sell the houses to home seekers as payment for developing the land.
It is alleged that the agreement also required Alpha to hand over 40 low-cost houses and 60 serviced stands to the municipality for commonage, with the stands ultimately intended for remittance to the Ministry of Local Government.
Allegations are that the Department of Spatial Planning in Matabeleland South subsequently prepared and approved layout plan GE98 for Dulibadzimu West in 2016 creating 1,132 residential stands. Alpha was authorised to develop 600 of those stands.
It is the State’s case that Gapare and the company instead sold 605 stands including those reserved for the 40 low-cost houses and 60 commonage stands and converted the proceeds to their own use.
The municipality later demanded the handover of the houses and stands together with five stands allegedly sold outside the agreement but the accused allegedly failed to comply.
The dispute escalated to court in September 2023 when the municipality obtained an order barring Alpha Housing Development from selling, developing or offering for sale stands under layout GE98 without its consent.
And it is alleged that the company nevertheless continued selling stands despite the court order.
It allegedly sold a further 527 residential stands valued at US$3.99 million bringing the total number of stands allegedly sold outside the agreement to 632.
The municipality then demanded the 40 houses, 60 commonage stands and 532 excess stands or their equivalent monetary value.
The State alleges that the municipality was prejudiced US$4.74 million and nothing was recovered.
