News / National
Councillors demand $25 000 in allowances
31 Dec 2018 at 17:47hrs | Views
A FORMER Gweru City councillor and a sitting one, have approached the High Court seeking an order directing the local authority to pay them a total of $25 000 in outstanding monthly sitting allowances.
Clr Albert Chirau, who is an MDC Alliance councillor for Ward 11 and Mr Moses Marecha, a former councillor for Ward 5, were fired by the then Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Minister Saviour Kasukuwere in 2015 on accusations of abuse of office and engaging in corruption.
Clr Chirau was accused of renting out a council club house in his ward and pocketing the rentals while Mr Marecha was accused of selling pit sand and gravel in Senga Suburb to a public contractor and pocketing the money.
Their dismissal was however, later declared a nullity by the High Court under case number HC8692/15 after the judge ruled that the council failed to satisfy the provisions of the constitutional demands and they resumed their duties.
However, Mr Marecha later lost in MDC-A primary elections in May to Mr Cleopas Shiri. Clr Chirau and Mr Marecha, through their lawyers Hlabano Law Chambers, filed summons at the Bulawayo High Court citing Gweru City Council and its town clerk Ms Elizabeth Gwatipedza, as defendants.
They want the council to pay them $12 500 each being allowances calculated from May 2015 to August 2018 including transferring a commercial stand to each one of them as part of their dues.
"Wherefore, the plaintiffs pray against the first and second defendants jointly and severally the one paying the other to be absolved for payment of $25 000 by the defendants to the first and second plaintiffs being unpaid allowances for the period May 2015 to August 2018," said their lawyers.
They also want the council to pay the legal costs at attorney and client scale. Clr Chirau and Mr Marecha said as part of their conditions of service they were entitled to receive a monthly allowance of $220 each and two stands being a residential and commercial per term. They said the council failed to pay them their dues following their suspension and subsequent dismissal.
"The plaintiffs are each owed $12 500 in unpaid allowances in United States dollars, which was the currency that they were supposed to be paid in at the time the allowances fell due. Despite repeated requests and demands, the defendants have failed and refused to pay the allowances and to transfer the stands," said the plaintiff's lawyers.
Gweru City Council is yet to respond to the summons.
Clr Chirau was elected in 2013 during which the then Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo later succeeded by Kasukuwere were engaged in running battles with the Gweru councillors which at one time, after the firing of the two, saw almost all the councillors being suspended and replaced by a three member commission.
Clr Albert Chirau, who is an MDC Alliance councillor for Ward 11 and Mr Moses Marecha, a former councillor for Ward 5, were fired by the then Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Minister Saviour Kasukuwere in 2015 on accusations of abuse of office and engaging in corruption.
Clr Chirau was accused of renting out a council club house in his ward and pocketing the rentals while Mr Marecha was accused of selling pit sand and gravel in Senga Suburb to a public contractor and pocketing the money.
Their dismissal was however, later declared a nullity by the High Court under case number HC8692/15 after the judge ruled that the council failed to satisfy the provisions of the constitutional demands and they resumed their duties.
However, Mr Marecha later lost in MDC-A primary elections in May to Mr Cleopas Shiri. Clr Chirau and Mr Marecha, through their lawyers Hlabano Law Chambers, filed summons at the Bulawayo High Court citing Gweru City Council and its town clerk Ms Elizabeth Gwatipedza, as defendants.
They want the council to pay them $12 500 each being allowances calculated from May 2015 to August 2018 including transferring a commercial stand to each one of them as part of their dues.
"Wherefore, the plaintiffs pray against the first and second defendants jointly and severally the one paying the other to be absolved for payment of $25 000 by the defendants to the first and second plaintiffs being unpaid allowances for the period May 2015 to August 2018," said their lawyers.
They also want the council to pay the legal costs at attorney and client scale. Clr Chirau and Mr Marecha said as part of their conditions of service they were entitled to receive a monthly allowance of $220 each and two stands being a residential and commercial per term. They said the council failed to pay them their dues following their suspension and subsequent dismissal.
"The plaintiffs are each owed $12 500 in unpaid allowances in United States dollars, which was the currency that they were supposed to be paid in at the time the allowances fell due. Despite repeated requests and demands, the defendants have failed and refused to pay the allowances and to transfer the stands," said the plaintiff's lawyers.
Gweru City Council is yet to respond to the summons.
Clr Chirau was elected in 2013 during which the then Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo later succeeded by Kasukuwere were engaged in running battles with the Gweru councillors which at one time, after the firing of the two, saw almost all the councillors being suspended and replaced by a three member commission.
Source - chronicle
