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Innocent Ruwende Senior Reporter
Harare City Council is set to blow more than $30 000 paying members of a tribunal tasked to investigate the alleged defiance by city executives to cut salaries as per Government directive, although the tribunal findings could be null and void.

It has emerged that council flouted procedures of the Urban Councils Act when they appointed the tribunal chaired by retired High Court judge Justice George Smith.

Other members of the tribunal include, Mr Puwai Chiutsi of P. Chiutsi and Associates, Meikles human resources manager Ms Thandiwe Tshuma, chartered accountant and accomplished investment banker, Ms Jennifer Makasi-Shava and Mr Adley Mubaiwa.

According to Section 100 of the Urban Councils Act, a councillor was supposed to chair the tribunal whose other members should also include councillors.

“100(1) A special committee may at any time be appointed — (a) by the executive committee; or (b) by a council: subject to the following provisions — (i) that committee shall be appointed for a specific task and once that committee has submitted a report thereon it shall be dissolved unless reconstituted by the executive committee or council for further investigation or consideration in connection with the original task; (ii) that committee shall be composed of councillors or councillors and persons, who are not councillors and any such member of that special committee shall be entitled to exercise a vote; (iii) the chairman of that committee shall be a councillor;” reads part of the Act.

Council usually pays members of special committees $6 000 each for a month long investigation and the salary tribunal has been working for almost three months.

According to the Special Council minutes of February 16 council mandated Mayor Bernard Manyenyeni and the chairperson of the audit committee to come up with terms of reference for the tribunal.

“The council agreed on the timeline of 28 days for the tribunal to conclude and present a report to council. It was further agreed that the tribunal looks into other grey areas in the investigation document and recommend on possible courses of action,” reads the minutes.

“Following further discussion, council resolved that the fees or allowances be guided by fees paid to other investigations carried out in the City of Harare before.”

The probe was prompted by a Government audit which unearthed financial irregularities at Town House.

According to the audit report sanctioned by the Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Ministry, city 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 as stipulated by the Government.

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

The city may have been prejudiced of millions, considering that over 40 managers also benefited.

These included the city doctors, engineers, lawyers and planners.

Government set a salary cap for salaries and perks per month for parastatal and local authorities’ bosses after it emerged that heads of State entities were paying themselves “obscene” salaries and perks at the expense of service delivery.