Go Beer taken to court

THE Local Authorities Pension Fund (LAPF) has taken Gweru municipality beer concern, Go Beer Breweries, to court over an estimated $200 000 pension fund debt.

The organisation claims Go-Beer Breweries has not been remitting workers' pension contributions since 2010.

According to a recent report by the local authority's finance and manpower committee, the company was served with LAPF summons on January 4 this year.

Soon after receiving the summons, Go Beer's lawyer Jumo Mashoko advised the company to immediately settle the debt without further delay.

Part of the report reads: "We refer to the matter in which the High Court summons were served on Go Beer on the 4th January 2013.

Mashoko's advice was that there was no chance of avoiding or delaying the litigation in light of the fact in the past, payment proposal had been made to the Local Authorities Pension Fund and had not been adhered to by Go Beer."

Council as the beer concern's biggest shareholder, has since resolved to pay $10 000 per month towards settling the debt.

"His worship the mayor (Tedious Chimombe) and the town clerk (Daniel Matawu) made a decision to take over the debt in view of the fact that Go Beer property was in danger of being attached. It was agreed that council will pay $10 000 per month until the debt is fully paid," Mashoko said.

Though the exact amount of the debt could not officially be readily established, council sources say Go Beer Breweries owed the pension fund more than $200 000 in unremitted contributions.

Last year, the local authority absorbed some 30 employees from Go Beer Breweries to ease pressure on the company's salary bill amid reports that the beer concern owed over $1,4 million to its suppliers and banks.