THE Supreme Court yesterday upheld the decision of the Labour Court and confirmed the dismissal of the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) manager Elineth Dick, who was fired from employment after clogging the parastatal’s computer system with pornographic material.
CHARLES LAITON SENIOR COURT REPORTER
Supreme Court Judges of Appeal, Justices Elizabeth Gwaunza, Anne-Mary Gowora and Antonia Guvava dismissed Dick’s appeal after reaching a unanimous view that her matter was devoid of merits.
The appeal’s dismissal followed submission by Zimra’s lawyer Advocate Thabani Mpofu, who argued that the Labour Court’s decision to uphold her dismissal was not flawed.
“She sent pictures of nude people and clogged her employer’s system. She was asked whether she knew the email address and the recipient, but she refused to answer,” Mpofu said addressing the court in reference to what transpired during Dick’s misconduct hearing prior to her dismissal.
The court heard that upon being engaged as a manager at Zimra, Dick was issued with a computer and an email facility for purposes of carrying out her duties in terms of her contract of employment.
However, on April 22 2010, Dick used the computer facility to forward an e-mail to [email protected] which contained “non-work related indecent, obscene and immoral material”, namely a video clip entitled Work done in the kitchen.
It was Zimra’s argument that it had not authorised such use of the computer and email facility which action constituted wrong use of the parastatal’s assets or property.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
“The dissemination or distribution of the obscene material aforementioned was not done as part of the execution of your duties, but was done while you were on a frolic of your own,” Zimra said in the court papers.
“The use of Zimra email and information technology equipment for the purpose of distributing and disseminating obscene and immoral material is prohibited in terms of the Zimra information communication technology policy. You are employed as a manager and in terms of Clause 17.1 of your contract of employment you were at all material times expected to exhibit a high degree of honour, integrity and professionalism and conduct yourself in a manner that is respectable.”
Zimra further argued that it was an implied condition of Dick’s contract of employment that she would always act and conduct herself in accordance with the laws of the country.
While presenting her case through her lawyer Obey Shava, Dick denied ever sending the said pornographic materials to anyone else adding that her office was easily accessible with four other workmates who could have hacked her email and sent the obscene material, but her assertion was dismissed by the court.
