News / National
Matibenga no-longer part of us - ZCTU
25 Jan 2012 at 13:19hrs | Views
The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions said it would like to make it known that allegations making the rounds that Minister of Public Service Lucia Matibenga is still part of ZCTU are unfounded.
Matibenga was the ZCTU third Vice President elected at the 2011 ZCTU Congress of 19 and 20 August 2011 until her appointment to her current post when she ceased to hold this position. The ZCTU said it has been startled by calls from some dubious sectors calling for Matibenga's resignation when she has barely been appointed to that post. ZCTU says the calls for Matinenga to resigns are likely coming from quarters that have a score to settle with her.
"We note with interest that one Job Sikhala has joined the fray and is insinuating that ZCTU 'factionalism' has now been taken into government. It is unfortunate that this jobless person is making such unfounded statements because to us there is no factionalism within ZCTU. The High Court settled the ZCTU matter by declaring Matombo and his gang of hooligans as illegitimate and the ZCTU took the matter a step further by expelling the six affiliates associated with this group," said ZCTU in a press statement.
The Daily News article of today titled 'Matibenga must resign: Sikhala,' written by Gift Phiri makes interesting reading because it only refers to the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe as a representative of the public service workers that is in conflict with Hon Matibenga. ZCTU says the story tries so hard to confine the debate of the plight of the public service workers to Majongwe and Matibenga yet there are other players like ZIMTA, TUZ and PSA.
The Zimbabwe Teachers Association and the Public Service Association are affiliates of the ZCTU as they were affiliated in 2011 and the ZCTU says it would like to urge responsible reporting based on facts because as the story stands they are tempted to believe that the reporter was working from an answer and merely looked for people to reinforce the conclusions that he had already made on his own.
"What we are currently seeing is regrettable where one person is persecuted for problems that have been in existence in the public service since time immemorial. The issue of low remuneration is not a public service issue alone, but it cuts across all sectors of the economy. The public service workers have a right to strike and the ZCTU did issue a solidarity message supporting the strike as ZIMTA and PSA are our affiliates," concluded the ZCTU press statement.
Matibenga was the ZCTU third Vice President elected at the 2011 ZCTU Congress of 19 and 20 August 2011 until her appointment to her current post when she ceased to hold this position. The ZCTU said it has been startled by calls from some dubious sectors calling for Matibenga's resignation when she has barely been appointed to that post. ZCTU says the calls for Matinenga to resigns are likely coming from quarters that have a score to settle with her.
"We note with interest that one Job Sikhala has joined the fray and is insinuating that ZCTU 'factionalism' has now been taken into government. It is unfortunate that this jobless person is making such unfounded statements because to us there is no factionalism within ZCTU. The High Court settled the ZCTU matter by declaring Matombo and his gang of hooligans as illegitimate and the ZCTU took the matter a step further by expelling the six affiliates associated with this group," said ZCTU in a press statement.
The Daily News article of today titled 'Matibenga must resign: Sikhala,' written by Gift Phiri makes interesting reading because it only refers to the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe as a representative of the public service workers that is in conflict with Hon Matibenga. ZCTU says the story tries so hard to confine the debate of the plight of the public service workers to Majongwe and Matibenga yet there are other players like ZIMTA, TUZ and PSA.
The Zimbabwe Teachers Association and the Public Service Association are affiliates of the ZCTU as they were affiliated in 2011 and the ZCTU says it would like to urge responsible reporting based on facts because as the story stands they are tempted to believe that the reporter was working from an answer and merely looked for people to reinforce the conclusions that he had already made on his own.
"What we are currently seeing is regrettable where one person is persecuted for problems that have been in existence in the public service since time immemorial. The issue of low remuneration is not a public service issue alone, but it cuts across all sectors of the economy. The public service workers have a right to strike and the ZCTU did issue a solidarity message supporting the strike as ZIMTA and PSA are our affiliates," concluded the ZCTU press statement.
Source - Byo24News
