Parliament spent close to US$400,000 of public funds upgrading the private residence of Senate President Mabel Chinomona, purchasing luxury fittings including curtains, beds, kitchen appliances, vases and flower pots, in transactions that systematically bypassed tender procedures, an investigation by CITE has established. Documents obtained by CITE show that the expenditure, amounting to US$372,260, was authorised through handpicked suppliers, despite multiple payments exceeding procurement thresholds that legally require open competitive bidding. The spending was flagged by Auditor General Reah Kujinga in her 2023 and 2024 audit reports on parliament, which concluded that the transactions circumvented procurement laws and exposed parliament to financial abuse.
Former finance minister Tendai Biti has now called for a full forensic audit of parliament, warning that Zimbabwe’s key oversight institution is itself sinking into corruption. “The question is, if parliament, the oversight body, itself becomes corrupt, who will then guard the guards?” Biti said. According to the Auditor General, parliament processed five payments, each exceeding US$20,000, without inviting competitive bids, in clear violation of procurement regulations.
The most expensive transaction occurred between June 9 and August 8, 2022, when parliament paid US$116,000 for the demolition of an existing perimeter wall and construction of a new one at Chinomona’s Borrowdale residence. The amount was well above the US$20,000 threshold, beyond which open tendering is mandatory. In February and March 2022, another supplier was handpicked to provide furniture and fittings worth US$57,874, including chandelier lights, lampshades and decorative flower vases.
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The Auditor-General noted that the applicable procurement threshold for this category was US$10,000. Parliament also sought Treasury approval to pay US$60,587 for bedroom upgrades, including two queen-size beds, one super king-size bedset for the main bedroom, four king-size pillow sets costing US$130 each and one standard pillow set costing US$109. The invoices were settled on February 4 and March 7, 2022. Further payments were made for kitchen furniture and appliances costing US$72,795, including washing machines, a microwave, three refrigerators, a rice cooker, a kettle and an air fryer.
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