Chipanga Accomplices Released on $100 Bail, Remanded to January 30

By Shingirai Vambe

Rusape-Three accomplices of Kudzanayi Chipanga, a prominent figure in Rusape, were granted USD $100 bail each by the Rusape Magistrate on Monday. Innocent Magutakuona, 40, Michael Musekiwa, 43, and Julius Chipfupa, 45, handed themselves over to the police after Chipanga’s appearance in court the previous Friday, where he was granted US $400 bail for allegedly stealing presidential inputs worth US$11,200 at Lawrencedale Primary School in Rusape.

According to the state’s case, the four accused individuals allegedly stole 200x50kg bags of ZFC compound D fertilizer, 100x5kg bags of SC649 maize seed, and 500 kits of vegetable seed from Noria Gashu, an employee at the Department of Agriculture Research and Extension for Makoni District. The accused persons, led by Chipanga, claimed they were going to distribute the inputs to the people, as they were the ones who had sourced them.

However, the distribution process quickly turned chaotic, with people rushing to get their share of the inputs. Chipanga then instructed the complainant, Gashu, to take the seed back to the GMB depot, citing that it was already late and that another suitable date would be organized for distribution. But instead, the accused persons escorted the truck back to Rusape, where they offloaded some of the inputs at Crofton and then proceeded to the industrial area, where they offloaded the remainder without Gashu’s presence. Unfortunately, none of the stolen inputs were recovered.

Interestingly, beneficiaries of the presidential inputs revealed to the Post On Sunday Newspaper that they all received their share of the inputs, despite the initial chaos. They also praised Chipanga’s approach, saying that he had intended to distribute the inputs transparently at a rally, where everyone in attendance would benefit.

Chipanga’s case is not the first time he has been in the spotlight. Previously, he was denied bail and remanded to custody, along with former Finance Minister Ignatius Chombo, who was facing corruption charges ¹. However, they were later granted bail by the High Court, with Chipanga being released on $500 bail