A TRIBUNAL set up to investigate Harare City Council’s salary scandal has, up to today, to table its findings after they failed to meet their deadline by two months.
BY XOLISANI NCUBE
The probe team, chaired by retired High Court judge Justice George Smith, was set up by Harare mayor Bernard Manyenyeni to establish if senior city executives, then under the leadership of Tendai Mahachi, siphoned money from the city by paying each other illegal salaries and allowances.
Manyenyeni told NewsDay yesterday that the team was expected to deliver its findings and recommendations to his office this week.
“I have been informed that they are done with the report and this week, they will table it for consideration by council and action, thereof,” he said.
Government insiders told NewsDay that Local Government minister Saviour Kasukuwere was eager to see the closure of the salary scandal, which was unearthed by an audit his ministry instituted and discovered that top council managers were siphoning public funds through illegal allowances and unapproved wages.
“The minister is not happy with this case being on for more than expected,” a source said.
“So he instructed that the issue be brought to finality, hence, the pressure from Manyenyeni to Smith.
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“The ministry wants to see a decision made and those who should be charged or disciplined be charged or disciplined without delay.”
Kasukuwere was not answering his phone yesterday when sought for comment on the matter.
The tribunal, which has two lawyers, two chartered accountants and a human resources expert, has been mandated to probe allegations that former town clerk, Mahachi, acting town clerk, Josephine Ncube and other directors illegally paid themselves allowances.
The probe came after a government audit unearthed massive financial irregularities at the local authority.
The government audit revealed that Mahachi and six other senior council officials allegedly claimed more than $1 million through dubious allowances and perks, while the rest of the workforce had not been paid.
According to the report, Mahachi and three other senior directors allegedly siphoned $282 000 from council without explanation.
The audit stated that $282 000 was transferred via real time gross settlement by finance director, Tendai Kwenda, into Mahachi and three other executive members’ personal bank accounts for unknown reasons.
The report read that in July 2015, five executive managers were paid unbudgeted-for on-call allowances amounting to $173 880.
