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INVESTIGATION: PS Wushe Accused of Hijacking Irrigation Tenders, Intimidating Engineers<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
By A Correspondent| A document from a ZimEye whistleblower has accused Dr. Thomas Utete Wushe, the newly appointed Permanent Secretary for Mines and Mining Development, of secretly owning a private drilling company that has been systematically taking over lucrative government irrigation contracts through intimidation and conflict of interest.<\/p>\n
According to the document, Dr. Wushe\u2019s company, Chisipite Drilling, has been paid for uncompleted substandard land clearing work for some time now, and currently he\u2019s carrying out two major government projects \u2014 the Chiredzi Ranch North project and the Chemakudo Irrigation Scheme in Mberengwa \u2014 without signed contracts.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe simply starts the work and tells the engineers to regularise it later,\u201d the document states. \u201cIf they refuse, they know they will be punished.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to the document, Dr. Wushe personally monitored all Department of Irrigation contractor WhatsApp groups using his official NetOne mobile number, and correspondence in project files is routinely signed by his wife, who presents herself under a business alias. \u201cThe files don\u2019t lie,\u201d the document reads.<\/p>\n
The document states that the most disturbing claim relates to the fate of Dr. Eng. Bezzel Chitsungo, the former Director of Irrigation Development in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development. Dr. Chitsungo was reportedly transferred to the Department of Soil Conservation \u2014 a far less influential position \u2014 after he repeatedly blocked Chisipite Drilling from carrying out non-compliant work.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was sent to soil conservation for saying no to Dr. Wushe,\u201d the document states. \u201cEvery engineer in the department got the message: cross him, and your career is over.\u201d<\/p>\n
The document says provincial engineers in Chiredzi and the engineer at Chemakudo are now working in \u201cperpetual fear.\u201d \u201cNo one dares to say no when Chisipite Drilling shows up on site,\u201d the document reads. \u201cThe work just begins, and the paperwork is filled in later \u2014 if at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
The document also alleges that Chisipite Drilling has no valid tender or contract with the Department of Irrigation for any work whatsoever. \u201cLook at the records, when they went on the ground and when the contract was signed,\u201d the document states. \u201cFor Chiredzi, the same applies to Chemakudo. Chisipite is on the ground, but no contract has been signed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The document further implicates a US$172 million government agreement with Valley Irrigation, signed in July 2024, to supply center pivot irrigation systems covering 23,000 hectares. According to the document, Valley Irrigation, through its Managing Director Kevin Williams, began land clearing and trenching \u2014 activities outside its scope of work \u2014 without departmental approval. The document alleges that Williams then sub-contracted Kevin Stirrup of Land Prep and Excavator Contractor without a clear agreement.<\/p>\n
The document claims that Dr. Wushe intimidated both Williams and Stirrup, forcing them to carry out the land clearing and trenching \u201cunder the banner of Chisipite Drilling.\u201d The document states the threat was simple: if they refused, they would not be paid for what the document describes as substandard and incomplete work.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a calculated effort to rip off the Department of Irrigation by bypassing all controls,\u201d the document states.<\/p>\n
According to the document, payment for work done by Valley-Center Pivot Irrigation without departmental approval has already been signed off by provisional engineers \u201cin fear\u201d as completed and up to standard, and has been sent for processing to Chisipite Drilling\u2019s account.<\/p>\n
The document also identifies Talkmore Chikwinho as a key frontman for Dr. Wushe\u2019s operations, describing him as \u201cthe master of botched works.\u201d According to the document, Chikwinho is one of two engineers who appeared in the Harare Magistrate\u2019s Court charged with theft of trust property involving US$50,000. \u201cThe man who fleeced a company of US$50,000 is now entrusted with millions of dollars of irrigation work,\u201d the document states.<\/p>\n
This is not the first time Dr. Wushe has faced scrutiny over potential conflicts of interest. In March 2026, media outlets reported that while serving as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Industry and Trade, he concurrently sat as board chairman of Amalgamated Regional Trading (ART) Holdings \u2014 a company regulated by the very ministry he headed. A legal opinion described the conflict as \u201cnot merely theoretical; it is functional,\u201d noting that Dr. Wushe was \u201cthe chief architect of the very industrial policies \u2026 that dictate the commercial survival of ART\u2019s subsidiaries.\u201d Dr. Wushe conceded at the time that he had only \u201cnoticed the possibility of exposure\u201d after journalists raised the question and promised to resign from the ART board, though it is unclear whether he ever did.<\/p>\n
Legal experts consulted for this investigation said the allegations, if proven, would violate multiple Zimbabwean laws, including the Public Service Act, the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act.<\/p>\n
The document ends with a plea: \u201cI cannot give you my name. Please check the numbers I have provided and follow the trail. The evidence is there. Protect me. Help us stop this looting before the entire irrigation budget is swallowed by one man\u2019s greed.\u201d<\/p>\n
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