Maputo, 17 Aug (AIM) – “Giant Panda Security”, a private security company, owned by a Chinese citizen named Jiye Zhuo, appears to be operating illegally in Maputo, after the Provincial Attorney’s Office closed down its operations in the central province of Sofala in February.
A note from the Attorney-General’s Office, dated 30 June, and cited by the independent television station STV, says that “Giant Panda” has now been banned from any security activity anywhere in the country.
The owners of the company, Jiye Zhuo and Kaman Lau Ming Kwan, are accused of money laundering. Any companies owned by these men are banned from any export or import activities.
But STV visited various places in Maputo city and province where it found “Giant Panda” security guards going about their business normally. They said they knew that Jiye Zhuo is in conflict with the institutions of Mozambican justice, but they could do nothing about that.
Another company owned by Jiye Zhuo, Tiger Import and Export Ltd, owes millions of meticais to the Mozambican state in fines accumulated and unpaid since 2022, even after a court decision ordering the company to pay.
Private security companies answer to the Ministry of the Interior, but when STV contacted the Ministry, it said it was still studying the dossier on “Giant Panda”.
The Association of Private Security Companies says it does not recognize “Giant Panda”, since it has never joined the Association, but it does know that the authorities have suspended its activities.
(AIM)
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