Kenneth Musanhi

Second Chimurenga Contribution

Musanhi was a liberation war collaborator. Musanhi had failed to finish school and his father wanted him to be a bus conductor but he refused. Musanhi said his father was so upset he chased him away. Kenneth Musanhi decided to go to Bindura to collaborate in the liberation war. ^[1]

Businesses

Asked how he accumulated his wealth, Kenneth Musanhi said he worked hard from humble beginnings.

He owns companies AVM Africa, Afgri Zimbabwe (formerly SABATA Holdings) which is the sole importer of John Deere equipment and CATS, as well as having shares in companies like National Foods and Innscor Zimbabwe as part of his KSM empire. He owns the whole shareholding of United Refineries Limited in Bulawayo and some shares in Bottom Amateur Winding (BAW).

In an interview with The Sunday Mail, Musanhi said around 1978 soon after leaving school he started buying cowpeas from rural peasant farmers and selling them to National Foods.

Musanhi said he sold two cattle that he got from his mother and used the money to grow sunflowers. Musanhi said Lever Brothers (now Unilever) was offering sunflower seed for free which allowed him to use the money he earned from selling the cattle to buy fertiliser and pay for labour. He said the rains were good that year and he had a bumper yield in 1979.

After selling the sunflowers to Lever Brothers, Musanhi said he got about Z$2 500 which was a lot of money at that time. When he got the money, Musanhi bought back the cattle for his mother. He said he bought four heifers-in-calving for about Z$300.

He then used the remainder of the money to start his cowpeas business. Musanhi said there was a lot of cowpeas lying around because the war had started and no one knew what to do with them. Farmers at the time could not deliver the cowpeas to markets because there were landmines everywhere.

Musanhi said he saw an opportunity and offered to buy the cowpeas from farmers for about Z$6 a bag. After that, he went to Farmers’ Co-op who were buying a bag for Z$75, but one of Musanhi's relatives told him that Farmers’ Co-op was actually buying the peas for National Foods and who were paying Z$150 a bag. Musanhi said after learning about the National Foods price, he increased his offer to the farmers from Z$6 a bag to Z$24.

He took advantage of his good ties with freedom fighters to transport produce without harm. Musanhi said was given four trucks by a businessman who was into the transport business to transport the cowpeas. He transported loads of the cowpeas to National Foods and said that is when he became a millionaire.

From buying and selling cowpeas, his next business venture was running taxis – one of which he personally drove. He then started a trucking company after he bought his first trucks from a white man called Steve Everrete. Musanhi said he bought 10 trucks and trailers at once. He said he took over Steve Everrete's contract to transport maize from Zimbabwe to Malawi.^[1]

AVM

In December 2015, Musanhi then AVM Africa Ltd group executive chairperson, signed a joint venture agreement with Baic Automative Group president, Mr Fengli Guo at State House.

Aeroplanes

Musanhi owns Central Air Transport Service which deals in aviation services. The company also does repairs of other planes in Zimbabwe.

In August 2016, Kenneth Musanhi spent nearly US$1 million on a plane. His company Central Air Transport Service (CATS), is the one which bought the plane at an auction. At the time, Musanhi already owned 11 other aircraft. The aircraft was auctioned on behalf of Pungwe Mining, which Mbada Diamonds owed money, after a High Court order to recover the debt. Musanhi's company bought the 12-seater Cessna 208 plane for US$980,000.

The aircraft are kept at Charles Prince Airport. Musanhi told Sunday Mail that he bought his first plane in 1990 before buying CATS in 2004, then known as United Air Charter and owning about 24 aircraft.

He also claimed that CATS, through its subsidiary Aerotech, is the only company that offers plane repairs in Zimbabwe and has the best-equipped workshop in the Southern African region.^[1][3]

Freda Rebecca Mine Dispute

In November 2019, Musanhi approached the High Court seeking to cancel an agreement of sale of shares by Freda Rebecca Holdings (Pvt) Limited and ASA Gold Limited (formerly Mwana Africa Ltd).

Musanhi said the two companies sold their shareholding to Sotic International, unlawfully disposing of their shares in Freda Rebecca Gold Mine Ltd. He added that Sotic International’s purchase of the entire shareholding in Freda Rebecca and ASA Gold Limited is in breach of an extant shareholders’ agreement.

Kenneth Musanhi and his company, Suncraft Enterprises (Pvt) Ltd, sought a declaration of efficacy and enforcement of the shareholders’ agreement that bound him, Freda Rebecca Holdings, ASA Gold Ltd and Freda Rebecca Gold Mine Ltd. He wanted the High Court to nullify Sotic International’s purchase of the shareholding in Freda Rebecca Holdings and ASA Gold Ltd.

Sometime in May 2012, Musanhi, Freda Rebecca Holdings (Pvt) Limited and ASA Gold Limited concluded a sale of shares agreement wherein he and his company purchased 15 percent shareholding in Freda Rebecca Gold Mine Ltd with ASA Gold and Freda owning and controlling the remaining 85 percent.

According to the agreement, such shares were to be first offered to Musanhi and his company, at a discount when the two companies were placed under judicial management. They also agreed that no shareholder could dispose of their shares unless agreed to in writing by all of the shareholders.^[4]

Political Career

Upon assuming the position of MP for Bindura North Constituency in 2013, Musanhi took it upon himself to spearhead developmental projects that included the building of secondary schools.

He built classroom blocks at Chipadze Primary, Kambira Primary, Kambira Secondary, Cowley Secondary, Chipadze Farm Secondary, Manga Primary, Mabwemachena Primary, Makuri Ranch Primary, Rosetta Rust Secondary, St Basil’s Secondary and Chipindura Primary schools, just to mention a few. When he was elected into Parliament in 2013 he was made Chairman of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Education, Sports and Culture. He was also a Member of the Standing Rules and Orders Committee of Parliament.

Kenneth Musanhi was voted Bindura North legislator in the 2018 Harmonised Elections. He defeated Takawira Chagweka (PRC), Darleen Chindi (NCA), Taonashe Majaji Chinguruve (ZimFirst), Tongai Kasukuwere (NPF), Agrippah Mutambara (MDC Alliance), Asani Sintala (FMZ) and Chiedza Yakobe (MDC-T).^[5]

On 1 December 2021, Musanhi was appointed Secretary for Production and Labour in the Zanu-PF Politburo by Emmerson Mnangagwa. He replaced Josiah Hungwe who became a senior member of the Politburo.^[6]

Arrest Over Stolen Pistol

In 2019, Musanhi was fined $200 after he left his pistol unsecured inside a car following a campaign rally in Chiwaridzo high-density suburb in July 2018.

Kenneth Musanhi, who was being represented by lawyer Graciano Chapupu Manyurureni, was fined on his own plea of guilty when he appeared before Bindura magistrate Ethel Chichera.

Prosecutor Tariro Janhi told the court that on July 31, Musanhi went about conducting party business with his pistol dangling from his shoulder holster.

He suddenly fell sick and loosened his shoulder holster as he drove back to his house. On arrival, he went inside the house while his campaign team went away.

Musanhi took another vehicle to visit a dentist, where he was further referred to South Africa for treatment, leaving the firearm unsecured in the motor vehicle.

When Musanhi returned from South Africa, he found the pistol stolen and filed a police report, leading to his arrest for negligence.^[7]

Controversies

Breach of Covid-19 Regulations

In January 2021, Musanhi held a rally defying President Emmerson Mnangagwa's Covid-19 lockdown directive. The rally was attended by over a hundred Zanu-PF party activists. He addressed almost a hundred party loyalists at a Zanu PF District Development Committee (DCC) meeting at Dawmill Farm.^[8]

Pictures With Susan Mutami

In February 2021, pictures of Musanhi with Temba Mliswa's ex-girlfriend were shared on social media. It is not clear when or if Mutami and Mliswa were still seeing each other when the pictures were taken. Speaking on the pictures which were taken in Musanhi's bedroom, Mutami said:

"The picture with Hon Musanhi I took that at his house in Avondale, there is no relationship whatsoever so please don’t get too excited over nothing."

^[9]

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  Kenneth Musanhi (sitting) and Susan Mutami (standing)

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  Susan Mutami and Kenneth Musanhi

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  Susan Mutami and Kenneth Musanhi in front of a mirror

References