Zimpapers Logo

Loevmore Meya Herald Correspondent
Chitungwiza town clerk Mr George Makunde had to be escorted out of council’s head office by members of the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) yesterday after attending a full council meeting as sacked workers bayed for his blood over unpaid salaries. The workers are demanding $2,1 million in unpaid salaries for the past 24 months. This was after more than 100 workers thronged the cash-strapped council in the morning demanding their dues following the termination of their jobs on three-months’ notice last week.

Tempers flared when the council’s management locked themselves in the chambers to convene a full council meeting. Angered by their former paymaster’s non-action, the disgruntled workers started chanting slogans, shouting at Mr Makunde through the windows in an attempt to disrupt the meeting. This forced the city fathers to call for its municipal police to deal with the situation, but they were overpowered. Police were then called in for reinforcement.

A truck with anti-riot police came armed with batons and tear gas. After a while, Mr Makunde summoned the employees’ representative Rev Katsina and his team to his office where they engaged in talks but these did not yield much. During the talks, Mr Makunde is said to have promised to pay them their three-months’ notice salary only insisting council did not have the capacity to pay the salary arrears.

This did not go down well with the irate workers who were now baying for his blood. In an interview, Mr Makunde said council was incapacitated to pay the salary arrears. “The situation still stands for the fired workers. As council, we have nothing that we can do in as far as paying their salary arrears is concerned. The reason why we asked them to go home was the burden before us that we do not have money to continue paying them salaries.

Some members of the ZNA were then called to escort Mr Makunde given the tense situation.