Zim GBC News | Business Correspondent
A GOVERNMENT-contracted company risks being blacklisted after failing to deliver seven vehicles worth US$425,866 that were fully paid for by Treasury in 2022, the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has revealed.
Tsapo Commercial (Pvt) Ltd was contracted by the Ministry of Finance to supply seven Toyota Hilux GD6 2.8L double cab vehicles in December 2022 but had not delivered four of them by September 2023, according to a PAC report presented to Parliament this Thursday.
The total value paid for the seven vehicles by Treasury was US$425,866, with the money disbursed on December 30, 2022.
The Auditor General’s audit concluded in September last year revealed that none of the vehicles had been handed over at that point. However, during an oral evidence hearing at Parliament last year, the Finance Ministry told the committee that three vehicles remained outstanding.
In its response to the committee, the ministry stated it had written to the Procurement Regulation Authority of Zimbabwe (PRAZ) seeking the supplier’s debarment and was considering legal action.
“The Ministry will engage the legal department as well as the Attorney General’s Office to institute specific performance and liquidated damages of 0.03% of the total contract value,” the ministry said.
It added that if the supplier fails to deliver, it will demand a bank guarantee and that no third-party insurance will be accepted.
The PAC has now given the ministry and the supplier a March 31, 2026 deadline to resolve the matter.
The company and its directors now risk being blacklisted from all government contracts until full delivery is made. The committee also directed Treasury to recover all funds with interest by the same date if the vehicles remain undelivered.
In its report, the PAC stated that no future prepayments for vehicles or equipment will be made without performance bank guarantees, and recommended that government introduce a statutory instrument requiring all state vehicle procurement to be done directly from manufacturers or authorised distributors.
The committee described prepayment for undelivered vehicles as creating “unacceptable financial risk,” pointing to weak procurement controls and a lack of due diligence in supplier selection.
It also accused Treasury of failing to take corrective measures in a timely manner after Tsapo Commercial failed to deliver the vehicles.
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