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Blessings Chidakwa

Municipal Reporter

HARARE councillors are enmeshed in allegations of kickbacks ranging between US$1 000 to US$5 000 to reinstate or renew contracts of suspended top officials.

The latest effort is the push to reinstate suspended human resources manager Dr Cainos Chingombe, a push spearheaded by chairman of the human resources and general purposes committee Cllr Joseph Kunashe backed by Cllr Blessing Duma and Cllr Loveness Gomba.

The committee claims it has to reinstate him in terms of Labour Court orders and dismisses any underhand dealings.

This is in defiance of Government’s directive that all other senior executives facing criminal charges at the courts be barred from coming to work until their cases are finalised.

For Harare, this group includes the town clerk, acting chamber secretary, director of housing, and acting director of finance.

Bizarrely, the councillors recommended not renewing contracts for transport manager Obert Mutonhori and spokesperson Michael Chideme, neither of whom is facing any criminal charges, yet wanting to renew the contract for housing director Addmore Nhekairo, who faces pending criminal cases.

Also, the human resources committee recommended that some suspended officials, including town clerk Engineer Hosiah Chisango, appear for disciplinary hearing, while others such as Eng Isaac Chawatama be spared.

Eng Chisango was scheduled to appear before a disciplinary committee this week.

Last week during a human resources committee meeting, Cllr Kunashe, who was fully paid his allowances for a trip to Bulawayo on council business, rushed back to Harare to chair the meeting that recommended the return of Dr Chingombe.

Instead of leaving other pertinent council business in Bulawayo, the present committee councillors could have simply elected an interim chair to lead the meeting.

In the process, Cllr Kunashe allegedly failed to reimburse allowances to council for the trip. Cllr Kunashe defended the return of Dr Chingombe saying the bribery issues against him were just allegations.

“This matter has two judgments from the Labour Court,” he said.

“The fact that myself and other councillors made a recommendation for the council to comply with an order of the Labour Court judge might not warrant for someone to make such frivolous allegations.

“Some are even saying we made a wrong decision. But from a professional point of view and to avoid further contest, one has to comply with the order since council also lost its application seeking leave to appeal to the Supreme Court.”

Cllr Kunashe said if ever there was any decision to be made to terminate Dr Chingombe’s contract, it had to comply with the court order.

Cllr Duma also defended the return of Dr Chingombe, saying they were simply enforcing a court order and that they were not beneficiaries of anything from any corruption proceeds.

Despite meddling in the human resources committee issues, Cllr Duma then tried to exonerate himself saying, “I am not even a member of the HR committee and I don’t have an influence in that committee at all.

“I am a member of the Environmental Management Committee and Business Committees. HR is a different ball game altogether.”

Cllr Gomba said she was not privy to details regarding Dr Chingombe’s case.

Leaked resolutions and audios from a meeting convened on April 6 this year at Sherwood Golf Course in Mabelreign attended by all the 23 newly elected CCC councillors reveal the plots and sub-plots by the opposition councillors to throw a blanket around their past sleazy dealings and avert possible arrest.

The councillors, most of whom are facing corruption allegations related to land scams, promised to defy any instructions against the Minister of Local Government and Public Works July Moyo and Harare Metropolitan permanent secretary Mr Tafadzwa Muguti.