Harare City Council is losing potential foreign currency revenue as tellers at its banking halls are pocketing US dollar payments and use their own bank cards to swipe the equivalent amounts in local currency.
Some council officials are working in cahoots with money changers who bring cards to swipe at the interbank rate, and then pocket US dollars and cash in on the difference between the interbank and black market rates.
For instance, using a black market rate of ZiG35 per US$1, it means if one pays US$10, the council officials swipe using the interbank rate of ZiG26 and pocket ZiG110.
According to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe the official rate as of last week was ZiG26,30 while the black market sale rate was hovering between ZiG35 to 40, although black market dealers were paying significantly less when buying US dollars.
The city has been operating without a billing system since March 2019.
Harare City Council spokesperson, Mr Stanely Gama, admitted the anomaly.
"It is not council policy but there are certain individuals who are illegally doing it. We urge residents to insist on a US dollar receipt if they pay in US dollars.
"We also urge residents to report cases where they pay in US dollars and get receipts in local currency. It is a serious offence and disciplinary action will be taken against those caught," he said.
Acting city finance director Mr Godfrey Kusangaya was unreachable and did not respond to WhatsApp messages sent to him.
This reporter on January 28 posed as a potential home seeker at Remembrance Drive Offices in Mbare where he uncovered the anomaly.
As he arrived at the gate, he was approached by a woman who offered to swipe for him.
He refused the offer and proceeded to join the queue which had less than five people.
Upon his turn to pay at the counter, he tendered a US$20 note for housing waiting list renewal fee, but was given receipt number 15057100 for ZiG526,77.
As a follow up on February 3, this reporter went with a colleague whom he gave US$15 to register on the housing waiting list. The payment was recorded in local currency at ZIG395, 25 on receipt number is 15057648.
A city official who requested anonymity for fear of victimisation said this practice was rife at council offices.
"Revenue officers actually survive on that, and in most cases they work hand in glove with top managers who protect them. Some actually have five swipe cards," said the official.
Combined Harare Residents Association director, Mr Reuben Akili, said those were some of the anomalies they had raised with council more than a year ago.
"We have raised this with local authority, and this was not only happening at district offices, but at council clinics as well. The local authority is losing foreign currency to its workers. Some of them even bring their own bank cards to work," he said.
"We are mobilising our residents to report areas where this is a rife because we did it last time and some of the officials were then transferred or suspended."
Mr Akili said as long as the city had a chaotic billing system, it would continue to lose revenue.
"This is unfortunate because there hasn't been any action to address the scandal. But again, the root cause is the absence of a functional ERP. We need a system that shows when a payment is made, a receipt indicating the balance is then sent in real time."
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An Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system is a financial system used by larger businesses. Harare City Council's finances are only second to central Government.
Harare Residents Trust director Mr Precious Shumba said billing had been among the long-standing grievances of residents.
"This is due to the absence of a functional, transparent and accountable Enterprise Resource Planning system. The City of Harare has been operating without a billing system since March 2019.
"Some councillors and managers are vehemently opposed to the return of the BIQ billing system for fear of exposing the massive looting of council funds recorded on that system," he said.
A tax expert, Mr Sylvester Ruzvidzo of Sylve Accounting Services, said any payment done in foreign currency should be receipted in the same currency for taxation purposes.
Traders issuing receipts in a different currency, according to Mr Ruzvidzo, were committing tax fraud.
