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Clr Manyenyeni

Innocent Ruwende Senior Reporter
Harare City Council is set to hold a special council meeting this week in which the local authority intends to dismiss four directors using findings of a tribunal that was necessitated by a Government audit.

The report implicates the senior employees in financial irregularities.

This comes after similar attempts flopped last week due to “political pressure”.

The city management views the whole exercise as a witch-hunt because the alleged defiance was done under the leadership of Dr Tendai Mahachi, who has since left council, and the salaries were allegedly approved by the Kurasha Commission.

Sources close to Town House said the directors were last week spared as the new Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Minister July Moyo did not want to commence with a storm to deal with.

“Mayor Bernard Manyenyeni is in possession of a damning report against the directors,” said a source. “Last week, the special meeting was cancelled after engagements with the parent ministry. However, this week we have to do a special council and pay the tribunal guys before council shut-down for the Christmas break.

“The MDC-T party will not entertain any lobbying and will not sweep the matter under the carpet. Some councillors are camped in support of certain affected officials.”

The special council meeting, which was cancelled at the last minute last Tuesday, was supposed to present findings of the investigations it carried out.

Cllr Manyenyeni yesterday said, “I told you last week that we are doing further consultation.”

Efforts to contact Minister Moyo were fruitless.

According to sources at Town House, acting town clerk Mrs Josephine Ncube, short-listed town clerk candidate and human capital director Dr Cainos Chingombe, finance director Mr Tendai Kwenda and health services director Dr Prosper Chonzi are facing the chop.

Councillors are divided on who should be fired because suspending all those who received salaries that were over and above what was stipulated by the Government would cripple operations.

According to an audit report sanctioned by the Local Government, Public Works and National Housing ministry, seven executives continued to earn between $12 000 and $21 000 from October 2014 to June 2015, as opposed to $10 450 for the highest earner stipulated by Government.

This, the report indicated, prejudiced the city of over $550 000.

Council has since rescinded the decision by the Kurasha Commission of 2005 and 2008 that empowered the town clerk to review allowances for executive managers following the special audit report.