Nepotism claims rock NSSA over recruitment process

NATIONAL Social Security Authority (Nssa) workers have complained to management about the recruitment process at the authority which they claim is unprofessional and nepotistic, the Zimbabwe Independent reported.

Nssa sources this week claimed that former Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare minister Prisca Mupfumira was part of the problem as she allegedly influenced part of the recruitment process which the workers complained about.

Those close to the developments said that on October 13 a meeting was held between Nssa workers' committee representatives and management to discuss the matter, among other issues.

"The week that new cabinet ministers were appointed and Mupfumira was dismissed, there was a works council meeting where workers' representatives questioned management over why, in some instances, recruitment procedures were being violated. All these things are coming up now because we have a new minister," a source said.

Minutes of the meeting show that management insisted that recruitments were above board.

"Management informed council that all recruitments were above board, notwithstanding the fact that some jobs were not advertised both internally and externally," read the minutes.

Nssa sources, however, maintained that recruitment procedures were being flouted.

"The strange thing is that some of these people who were being brought in lacked requisite qualifications and some were being employed for non-managerial posts and yet they were already above recruitment range of below 55 for such posts. That is clear violation of the recruitment policy," said a worker.

Sources said that some of the people recruited were related to Mupfumira.

Questions sent to Nssa on Wednesday this week had not yet been responded to at the time of going to print.

Mupfumira has been in the spotlight after her dismissal. A fortnight ago President Robert Mugabe threw Mupfumira under the bus and accused her of corruption and abuse of funds at the ministry she headed. Mupfumira thought she had been dismissed due to faction politics.

Sources told this paper that there is talk of investigating Mupfumira to scrutinise all her ministry financial affairs and to establish whether she used her power to pressure Nssa into funding her personal and political projects as alleged in some circles.

"After what the President said, there is likely going to be an investigation at her ministry which is now under Patrick Zhuwao to see if she might have influenced the abuse of ministry and Nssa funds," one official said. "That issue will not go away until a forensic audit has been carried out and the matter settled."

Efforts to get a comment from Mupfumira were fruitless as her mobile phone was not being answered. She did not respond to text messages.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday Nssa managed to obtain a stay of execution on an urgent basis at the High Court on a matter where the institution was set to lose property to its former employee Chikuni Mutiswa.

A fortnight ago the High Court had ordered Nssa to pay its former chief strategic assets officer, Mutiswa, US$628 336,23 in damages for unlawful dismissal after he served for only six months. High Court judge Justice Mangota granted Nssa the stay of execution.