Dilesh Nguwaya

Events

Coronavirus

Dylish Nguwaya's Drax International donated a ventilator to government to be used in the fight against coronavirus. Mr Nguwaya has appeared at the State House on 8 April 2020 in the company of Collins Mnangagwa, son of the sitting Zimbabwe President, and at that function he carried himself as a phenomenal philanthropist donating COVID-19 related medical supplies worth $200 000, and promising to do more through a $60 million deal with NatPharm..

Nguwaya (L) donating towards Covid-19 pandemic to the Government of Zimbabwe

Friendship with Collins Mnangagwa

Collins and Dylish

Dylish is known to be a friend and business associate of Collins after the later founded Drax International but Collins Mnangagwa denies any links with Dylish. This is despite photos of Collins and Dylish together.

Dylish Nguwaya (2nd from R) posing for a picture flanked by the Mnangagwa twins Collins and Shaun

Criminal Prosecutions

Nguwaya has been arrested multiple times for armed robbery, cocaine possession and extortion. Nguwaya, styling himself as a police officer and sometimes as an informer for Zimbabwe’s intelligence services, has landed in court over half a dozen times accused of a range of criminal activities.

Arriving in Harare from Gokwe where he grew up, he is known to have enlisted for the police constabulary and was attached to Mabelreign police post. In July 2012, a couple were driving on the Harare-Bulawayo Road and at a traffic-controlled intersection at the Warren Park offramp, Nguwaya allegedly pulled up next to them in his BMW. A court heard he accused the man who was driving with his wife of side-swiping his car before moving to block the road with his vehicle. Shortly after, a police officer from Mabelreign arrived at the scene and parked behind the terrified couple’s vehicle, boxing them in. Nguwaya and his police colleague were alleged to have snatched a handbag containing US$2 500 and valuables worth US$255 at gunpoint before jumping into their vehicles and driving off at speed towards Kuwadzana. The couple later withdrew the charges, allegedly after receiving threats.

In April 2013, Nguwaya was charged alongside two police officers and another man accused of extorting US$6 000 from Valley Fresh Shop in Strathaven, Harare. Posing as detectives from the Criminal Investigations Department, they had accused the company of smuggling a truckload of fruits and vegetables from South Africa and demanded to be paid to call off the investigation.

Four years later, in March 2017, he was prosecuted for extortion, possession of cocaine and contravening the Medicines and Allied Substances Control Act after being found in possession of a prescription drug, sildenafil, which is sold under the brand name Viagra.

Nguwaya had extorted US$15 000 from one Bruce Michael Blake, who was forced to part with the money after Nguwaya told him he was under investigation for spying, while promising he could make the charges go away.

In June 2017, he admitted conspiring with three Central Intelligence Organisation agents and a police officer to extort US$20 000 from Baoning Guo, a Chinese national. ^[2]

Dylish Nguwaya

Covidgate: Arrest, Trial & Removal From Remand

Delish Nguwaya was arrested and charged with fraud. The case was in connection with a Coronavirus tender scam that saw the government paying his Company Drax International LLC an amount of about US$1 million. Nguwaya was released on 50 thousand Zimbabwe dollars bail. The High Court had earlier on reserved judgment on bail application for Nguwaya. Nguwaya was ordered to surrender his travelling documents to the clerk of court, surrender title deeds of his house, and not interfere with State witnesses until the finalisation of the matter.

On 1 December 2020, Nguwaya was removed from remand by Harare magistrate Ngoni Nduna and the State was told to proceed by way of summons when it is ready to go to trial. The removal from remand came after Nduna noted that the State was failing to show seriousness in investigating and prosecuting the charges and failing to justify delays in giving a trial date. He further said it was almost six months since Nguwaya had been arrested, with the State promising to complete investigations and give him a trial date on 28 July. Nguwaya had been remanded 10 times, and he had been religiously attending court with the State failing to give cogent reasons for further postponing any trial.^[3]

Affirmative Action Group Appointment

On 13 May 2021, Nguwaya was appointed Affirmative Action Group (AAG) consulting advisor responsible for security. The appointment was made by AAG founding president Phillip Chiyangwa with immediate effect. Chiyangwa said in a statement:

I hereby appoint you as the AAG national executive council member responsible for security with immediate effect, to serve from May 2021-2025.

Chiyangwa said Nguwaya’s mandate is to advocate for and defend, the rights of the majority against market forces in light of the weaknesses in the public social support systems. Said Chiyangwa:

…Thus (he) will actively defend the right of all disadvantaged persons or groups unfair and unjust treatment at the bends of institutions that draw their strength or profit from the operation of democratic and popular based governance in Zimbabwe.

^[4]

Pomona Dump deal

Council resolves to cancel deal, August 2022

In August 2022, Harare City Council resolved to cancel the Pomona waste management deal. They also disregarded Local Government minister July Moyo’s order that council pay a US$1,5 million bill due to Geogenix BV for services rendered in May and June at the Pomona waste management energy plant. Mayor Jacob Mafume confirmed that the local authority had cancelled the Pomona deal, saying Moyo must go to court if he was unhappy.

A week before, Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA) filed an urgent High Court application seeking an order to set aside a resolution to use the city’s devolution funds to pay Georgenix. CHRA was represented by Archford Rutanhira and Evans Moyo of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR). ^[5]

ZITA Award

In December 2022, the Zimbabwe Integrated Traders Association (ZITA) gave controversial businessman Delish Nguwaya with a special Innovative Business Award in recognition of his leading role in the Pomona Waste Management project. Under the deal, City of Harare was to pay US$22 000 per day or an estimated US$1 million a month to Gegenix BV fronted by Dilesh Nguwaya for the next 30 years. ^[6]

2023 Councillors Report

A CoH Councillors investigation into the Pomona Dump deal, has revealed that it would cost the City of Harare over US$1 billion while the city would derive revenue of US$60.39 million from the sale of electricity. The total cost of the project to City of Harare over the period of 30 years period will be US$1,002,202,001.65.

The report showed that the City of Harare was not allowed full involvement in the deal which was imposed on Harare by the Local Government ministry. The contract was evaluated by the Public Private Partnership (PPP) unit in the Finance ministry. And due diligence was not followed in awarding Geogenix BV, formerly Integrated Energy BV, the contract to operate the Pomona dumpsite. The PPP unit was established in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development by section 34 of the Zimbabwe Investment Development Agency Act [Chapter 14:37]. ^[7]

References