The Ministry of Mines and Mining Development has withdrawn a controversial Siting of Works approval granted to Botha Gold Mine following serious allegations of fraud, forgery, and abuse of office raised by Mutapa Gold Resources, operators of Freda Rebecca Gold Mine.
This development comes after NewsHawks recently published an investigation exposing how a dispute over mining boundaries had deepened following fresh evidence suggesting that a Siting of Works plan linked to Botha Gold Mine may have been forged to misrepresent its proposed operations.
In its 30 April publication, NewsHawks reported allegations by Freda Rebecca Gold Mine that a senior survey official in the Ministry of Mines in Bindura, identified as Mutamba, had processed an allegedly adulterated Siting of Works plan.
The dispute centres on claims that Side Electrical (Pvt) Ltd, trading as Botha Gold Mine, submitted manipulated coordinates that allegedly encroached into Mining Lease 21 (ML21), an area associated with Freda Rebecca Gold Mine.
The latest developments follow earlier reports questioning the legality of Botha Mine’s registration positions and the role of ministry officials in processing the disputed Siting of Works plan.
In a letter dated 29 April 2026, Mashonaland Central Provincial Mining Director T. Kashiri informed Botha Mine that the Siting of Works approval for Botha 1-4, registration numbers 46035-38, which had been granted on 21 April, had been “withdrawn and nullified”.
The ministry said the decision followed consultations concerning parties involved in what it described as a boundary dispute and ongoing court proceedings.
“Accordingly, the Siting of Works which was approved on the 21st of April has been withdrawn and nullified,” the letter read.
Copies of the correspondence were sent to Freda Rebecca Gold Mine, the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) in Bindura, and the Officer Commanding Mashonaland Central Province.
Days later, Botha Mine withdrew an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) addendum it had submitted to EMA.
In correspondence dated 6 May 2026, Side Electrical wrote to EMA requesting the withdrawal of the submission “to enable us to attend to the correspondence that you requested”.
The company did not provide further details.
However, Mutapa Gold Resources says the withdrawal followed objections it raised with EMA regarding what it described as a fraudulent Siting of Works plan.
In a strongly worded letter dated 8 May 2026 addressed to the Provincial Mining Director, Mutapa said it had objected to Botha’s EMA application “citing, amongst other grounds, the issue of a fraudulent Siting of Works plan as a basis for non-consent to the processing of the Environmental Impact Assessment”.
Mutapa welcomed the withdrawal of the approval, saying: “We welcome the withdrawal of the forged Siting of Works plan by the Ministry of Mines. This document was mischievously aimed at misleading EMA in the EIA process.”
The company alleged that the disputed plan had been manipulated using geo-referenced overlays to place Botha Mine inside ML21 despite its registered position being elsewhere.
“It became clear that Ministry of Mines officials who processed this document did so fraudulently by placing Side Electricals in ML21 contrary to its actual registration position,” the letter stated.
Mutapa further claimed the plan was intended to unlawfully increase Botha Mine’s operational area without proper authority.
“The plan was fraudulently aimed at increasing Botha’s area without a certificate or authority supporting this expansion. This constitutes fraud,” the company said.
The company also disputed the Ministry’s assertion that there was a pending boundary dispute before the courts.
“We note with great concern that your office has created the impression that there is a boundary dispute and a pending court case on a boundary dispute when no such case exists,” Mutapa wrote.
In one of the most explosive claims contained in the correspondence, Mutapa named four Ministry of Mines officials it accused of participating in processing the disputed Siting of Works document dated 17 April 2026.
The officials named are S. Madiro from Engineering, P. Mushangwe from Geology, S. Mutamba from Metallurgy, and C. Manyunga from Survey.
Mutapa described their alleged conduct as “deplorable, corrupt, criminal, and amounts to abuse of office”.
The company threatened to escalate the matter to law enforcement authorities if the ministry failed to provide a written response by 8 May 2026.
“Should a clear position not be adopted in writing by end of day 8 May 2026, a criminal complaint for Fraud, Forgery, and Criminal Abuse of Office will be filed with the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission and the Zimbabwe Republic Police,” the letter warned.
The complaint was copied to the Secretary for Mines and Mining Development, EMA, and the Zimbabwe Republic Police.
The controversy follows earlier reports published on 22 April 2026 in which Freda Rebecca Gold Mine alleged that Botha Mine had submitted “fraudulently surveyed coordinates” designed to shift Botha 1-4 onto portions of ML21.
At the time, Provincial Mining Director Kashiri reportedly stated under oath that Side Electrical “has never acquired any mining rights within Mining Lease 21”.
Botha Mine had dismissed those claims, arguing that the matter remained before the courts and that the ministry’s filings were procedural.
As of yesterday, Botha Gold Mine and the Ministry of Mines had not publicly responded to the latest allegations.
Government Chief Mining Engineer Munodawafa reportedly said the issue was being handled at provincial level, while the Provincial Mining Director declined to comment. – (NewsHawks)
