NetOne board members face Sacu probe

FORMER NetOne chief executive Lazarus Muchenje has written to the Special AntiCorruption Unit (Sacu) requesting that it launches a probe against the telecommunications firm's board members.

Muchenje, who has been battling to retain his job at the government-owned firm, wrote to Sacu on March 22, 2021 alleging that board members Beaula Chirume and Susan Mutangadura had unscrupulously appointed Raphael Mushanawani to a non-existent post within the parastatal.

"Dr Beaula Chirume and Ms Susan Mutangadura, as committee members of the NetOne human resources board committee, appointed Raphael Mushanawani to a non-existent position through an irregular contract of four months instead of the standard three years or five year NetOne contracts," Muchenje alleged.

"In a employment contract signed on August 27, 2020 by Dr Chirume, as HR board committee chairperson and witnessed by her HR committee member Susan Mutangadura, Raphael Mushanawani was appointed to NetOne for a period of four months in the position of acting chief technology officer."

Muchenje argued that there was no such position at the , adding that it was against contractual law for an individual to take up a leadership role without being an employee of the company.

"There is no such position at NetOne. A person when appointed contractually has to be appointed into an existing substantive position. Then they act into another role, if there are vacancies.

"Therefore, for someone to act in a role, they must first of all be an employee of the company in a substantive role and then they can act in another vacant role which was not the case with Mr Mushanawani as his previous contract had expired."

Muchenje emphasised that an employment contract with someone in an acting role was highly irregular, illegal and clearly an abuse of duty by public officers.

Sacu boss Thabani Mpofu could not immediately comment on the matter.