Wicknell Chivayo’s TTM Global R7.9 Billion Cancer Deal Sparks Outrage
Controversial businessman and ZANU PF activist Wicknell Chivayo has once again become the centre of a national controversy after a South African-registered company linked to him — TTM Global Medical Exports (Pty) Ltd — was awarded a staggering US$439 million (R7.9 billion) contract to supply cancer treatment machines to Zimbabwean hospitals. The deal is part of what government sources call a “presidential scheme for the provision of cancer treatment equipment,” but critics are calling it yet another shady transaction involving the flamboyant and controversial businessman.
A Company Less Than A Year Old
The contract, reportedly signed by Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Martin Rushwaya, will see TTM Global receive US$109,320,600 (R1.97 billion) annually over four years. Yet the company was only incorporated in November 2024 — barely seven months before it secured the lucrative health contract.
In a series of detailed questions on X (formerly Twitter), opposition politician and lawyer Fadzayi Mahere openly challenged Chivayo to explain:
“Dear @wicknellchivayo,
- On what date did your South African company, TTM Global Medical Exports (Pty) Ltd, tender for the supply of cancer treatment equipment?
- Do you have a copy of the call for public tenders?
- Can you explain why the value of the contract is half a billion US dollars?
- On what basis was your company awarded the contract given that this company came into existence in November 2024, meaning that it is less than a year old?
- Why is the physical address of your company a hotel? Is it a briefcase company? Does your company manufacture cancer treatment equipment at Da Vinci Hotel and Suites?”
The company, according to official records, is registered at the Da Vinci Hotel and Suites in Sandton, Johannesburg — a luxury hotel and shopping complex that does not host any known medical equipment manufacturing facility.
No public response from Chivayo had been issued by the time of writing.
Four-year deal signed without public tender?
Prominent journalist and social media commentator Jealous Mbizvo Mawarire, known for publishing whistleblower-style information, alleged that the Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Dr Martin Rushwaya, personally signed a four-year contract with TTM Global Medical Exports, valued at US$109,320,600 (R1.96 billion) per year.
Mawarire further escalated the conversation by leaking documents allegedly showing that Chivayo personally drafted the proposal that led to the awarding of the cancer machine deal — a move that bypassed competitive bidding.
“Here are the first 4 pages of the ‘proposal’ to run a ‘presidential scheme for the provision of cancer treatment equipment’ that Dumbuzenene (Chivayo) did. The rot in Emmerson Mnangagwa has now reached alarming levels,” he posted.
“The contract was entered into by Martin Rushwaya and TTM Global without going to tender… The fact that Emmerson Mnangagwa is touring hospitals, two months after the contract was entered, is a poor window dressing gimmick by lunatics who think all Zimbabweans are fools.”
The full contract is worth US$437,282,400 (R7.85 billion), with annual payments broken down across four years.
IMC Communications now building roads
Separately, another Chivayo-linked company, IMC Communications, has made headlines after shifting from telecommunications to road construction. The company was previously known for attempting to bring Starlink to Zimbabwe and holding an ISP licence from the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (Potraz).
However, the Starlink deal collapsed when Potraz clarified that no exclusive reseller agreements had been granted.
Now, IMC Communications appears to have pivoted into infrastructure. Videos circulating online show road construction sites with IMC Communications-branded dump trucks, pavers, rollers, and workers in matching gear.
Many Zimbabweans are baffled. Social media users asked how a telecommunications firm, registered only months ago, suddenly secured contracts in civil engineering.
“Company yanezuro uno iyi,” wrote one X user.
“How does a communications company get a tender for road construction?” asked another.
While the government has yet to release details of the contracts, the video evidence has intensified suspicions that tenders are being awarded without transparency or public scrutiny.
IMC Communications, believed to be registered in Zimbabwe as a private limited company, was initially focused on fibre-optic installations and mobile network development. Its director, Wicknell Chivayo, has publicly claimed to have partnered with various international tech firms — though few of those partnerships have been confirmed.
Chivayo was also previously involved in the failed Gwanda solar power project, for which millions were paid upfront without meaningful progress.
Repeat Offender? Financial Intelligence Centre Report Raises More Alarms
This is not the first time Chivayo’s name has been tied to controversial public contracts. A bombshell report by ZimLive and South Africa’s Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) revealed that Chivayo had received over R800 million (US$41.9 million) from a R1.1 billion (US$61.1 million) payment made by Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Finance to a separate company, Ren-Form CC, for election supplies ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Once the money was received from Treasury, Ren-Form reportedly funneled most of it to Chivayo’s companies: Intratrek Holdings and Dolintel Trading Enterprise. The FIC flagged multiple payments as “suspicious”, citing:
“Rapid movement of funds to various parties, round figure payments, luxury purchases, and transaction activity not in line with the profiling information of the account holder.”
From these accounts, Chivayo allegedly made significant transfers to:
- R5.4 million to luxury car dealer Daytona
- R36 million for personal vehicle purchases
- R1.6 million to travel agent Flight Centre South Africa
- R4 million to law firm Strauss Scher Inc
- R1 million to Zimbabwean cosmetic brand Christian by Hadassah
One payment of R351 million went to a little-known company called Asibambeki Platinum Group, with one Emmanuel Musanyenda listed as sole director.
Despite this, Chivayo has maintained his innocence. He has denied any criminal wrongdoing and even issued an apology to President Mnangagwa and several top officials after audio clips allegedly implicating them surfaced.
“I apologise for creating the adverse impression that our institutions are involved in corruption,” he said.
Presidential Tours Raise Eyebrows
President Mnangagwa tweeted on 16 June 2025 that he had visited Parirenyatwa Hospital, Sally Mugabe Hospital, and NatPharm warehouse to assess Zimbabwe’s healthcare system. But critics were quick to say the tour was a “public relations stunt.”
Jealous Mawarire wrote:
“Yesterday’s tour of hospitals by ED was a poor retrospective gimmick meant to sanitise the more than $400m heist that Rushwaya and ED pulled with the TTM Global scandal.”
So far, there has been no official statement from the Ministry of Health, the Office of the President, or TTM Global Medical Exports in response to the allegations.
Zimbabweans continue to demand answers. With healthcare in crisis, questions are mounting as to how a luxury hotel-based firm owned by a politically connected figure was granted nearly half a billion US dollars — without a public tender.
