By Desire Tshuma
HARARE — Former Citizens Against Economic Sanctions (CAES) Executive Director Martin Zharare (pictured)who has been summoned to appear before Chief Nembire in Mashonaland Central on October 17 under case number 52/26, is at the centre of multiple fraud-related allegations that have trailed him across several provinces over the past year.
The latest matter before Chief Nembire relates to allegations that Zharare used the traditional leader’s name to defraud CAES members in Mashonaland Central and that he invoked the Chief’s name while defending himself at the magistrates’ court. Details of the case, including the number of members affected and the value involved, are yet to be fully disclosed, with the hearing expected to shed more light.
The summons comes against the backdrop of a series of allegations that have dogged the former anti-sanctions lobby leader since 2025.
In July 2025, Zharare appeared before Mount Darwin Magistrate Patience Chirimo facing two counts of fraud. The State, led by prosecutor Albert Mazhindu, alleged that he had gone to Plot Number One, Panorama in Mount Darwin claiming to be drilling boreholes under a Presidential scheme. A 74-year-old villager, Tawodzera Leonard, allegedly paid US$1,500 for a borehole that was never drilled, while former headmaster Shylock Kajamu was allegedly defrauded of US$1,600 in a similar manner. The matter went to full trial and on June 8, 2026, the court acquitted Zharare at the close of the State case, ruling that prosecutors had failed to prove intention to defraud. His lawyer, Tinotenda Zisengwe, argued that State witnesses had confirmed drilling equipment had been on site and that materials had been delivered, and Zharare maintained the charges were politically motivated and part of an internal plot to remove him from CAES leadership.
Separate from the court case, the CAES board expelled Zharare on March 9, 2026, following an internal review. In a letter issued from the organisation’s Harare offices, the board accused him of orchestrating a nationwide borehole scheme in which rural communities were charged US$1,800 per borehole for projects that were allegedly never executed. Matabeleland North was cited as the worst affected, with the board claiming more than 50 boreholes in Binga district alone were paid for but not drilled. The letter referenced EcoCash transactions and named alleged victims, including a 90-year-old woman in Binga, a villager identified as Thabani Moyo of Dobola Ward 16 who was allegedly instructed to pay outside a closed office in Bulawayo, and a woman identified as Mrs Magarate in Mashonaland Central. Police reports were filed under RRB 6771010 in Mount Darwin, with the board claiming additional villagers were defrauded of US$7,500.
The board also alleged that Zharare created a fictitious Ward 4B in Mhondoro Ngezi and used it to withdraw agricultural inputs valued at more than US$6,000, whose beneficiaries did not exist in the CAES database, and that villagers in Bubi district were allegedly fleeced of US$4,500 for boreholes that were never drilled. An additional US$1,200 allegedly collected in Zaka district under a membership drive was also flagged as unaccounted for.
In Mashonaland West, Zharare is facing further allegations of diverting 50 bags of fertiliser meant for CAES beneficiaries at Mamina depot in Mhondoro, with a complaint reportedly lodged at ZRP Mamina in December. It is alleged the fertiliser was given to relatives and associates instead of intended beneficiaries.
Following the wave of allegations, several Government institutions publicly distanced themselves from Zharare. The Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, the Zimbabwe National Water Authority and the Office of the Minister of State for Mashonaland Central said they had no contractual or official working relationship with him and had not authorised him to act under the Presidential Borehole Drilling Programme.
Zharare, who was arrested in Mount Darwin and later at the High Court in Harare in May 2026, has consistently denied wrongdoing, insisting he remains the legitimate leader of CAES and describing his expulsion as an unconstitutional takeover linked to internal disputes over Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3.
His appearance before Chief Nembire next Friday is expected to address concerns over the alleged abuse of traditional authority, with the Chief’s court seeking to establish whether his name and office were used without consent.