CHITUNGWIZA Town Council is in hot soup after it fired three employees for appearing before Parliament and exposing corruption at the municipality where managers were alleged to have opened secret bank accounts to pay themselves hefty salaries.
SENIOR PARLIAMENTARY REPORTER
The National Assembly yesterday issued a Certificate of Privileges in favour of the three, Tapson Bamusi, Ephraim Katsina and Ngonidzashe Murau. The certificate effectively orders Chitungwiza to reinstate the three as firing them was in contempt of Parliament’s privileges and immunities and in contravention of the Constitution.
The affected employees were fired after they appeared and gave oral evidence before the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare chaired by Gutu East MP Berita Chikwama (Zanu PF).
MPs from across the political divide yesterday resolved that the Chitungwiza Town Council management should be summoned before the committee to answer on why they behaved as if they were bigger than the legislature.
Chegutu West MP Dexter Nduna (Zanu PF) who introduced the motion to issue the three with a Certificate of Privileges said if Parliament did not take action on Chitungwiza Town Council, they would send wrong signals to people that the legislature was a toothless bulldog, as well as give the impression to people that it was dangerous to appear before Parliament to give oral evidence as they could be fired from work.
“If not for the three brave men who appeared before the committee, we would never have known of the rot at Chitungwiza Municipality, where service delivery had become a rarity and workers had gone for 13 months without pay while directors paid themselves fraudulent handsome payments from a secret account,” Nduna said.
“Parliament must respond immediately by issuing a Certificate of Privileges to the three employees, and if we allow these witnesses to be abused, we will send wrong signals to thousands of people who want to give oral evidence before Parliament.”
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MP for Mberengwa East Makhosini Hlongwane (Zanu PF) said the local authority had defied President Robert Mugabe’s statement that corruption should not be tolerated.
Harare West MP Jessie Majome (MDC-T) said Chitungwiza Town Council management should be ashamed of their actions, adding they were ignorant about the Constitution which protected people who appeared before Parliament and gave rights to workers to expose corruption.
Meanwhile, MDC-T legislator Ruth Labode asked Finance and Economic Development Minister Patrick Chinamasa to explain why government continued to deduct contributions by civil servants to Premier Service Medical Aid Society, but did not remit the money deducted during the past three months resulting in doctors refusing to treat PSMAS card holders.
Chinamasa admitted that government was indeed not remitting to PSMAS saying it was because they were still cleaning up finances at PSMAS which had been bedevilled by corruption.
“After this exercise is complete we will feel confident to remit that money,” Chinamasa said.
