The ManicaPost
Cletus Mushanawani and Abel Zhakata
A LEADERSHIP crisis is rocking Mutare City Council, with the mayor and his deputy clashing over the suspension of acting Town Clerk, Engineer Tinashe Mtetwa.
The situation came to a boil on Tuesday when Mutare Mayor, Councillor Blessing Tandi, suspended Eng Mtetwa over a slew of allegations, including the fact that he called off interviews for a substantive Town Clerk when all had already been set.
Clr Tandi also accused the acting Town Clerk of making bad business decisions that have prejudiced council of revenue.
However, as soon as the mayor had left on a business trip to Bulawayo and before the ink could even dry on Eng Mtetwa’s suspension letter, the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Farai Bhiza, who was now the Acting Mayor, reversed Clr Tandi’s decision.
In a letter dated December 7, 2021, Clr Tandi wrote to Eng Mutetwa: “This memo serves to inform you that the Mayor has suspended you from the office of the Town Clerk immediately in terms of Section 139 (3) of the Urban Councils Act, which office you were holding in acting capacity (sic).
“The following reasons were my consideration in coming up with the decision. You prejudiced council revenue by calling off interviews of the Town Clerk whose preparations were at an advanced stage thereby failing to implement a council resolution despite instructions to do so.
“You also called off the trip to Harare for legal opinion by the employment council when some of the attendees were already in Harare, yet you had earlier approved the trip.
“You ill-advised council on the legality of the recruitment process for the substantive Town Clerk’s interviews. In light of the above, as the Mayor, I see it fit that you cannot continue in the office and I require you to leave the office forthwith. Please note your suspension is for the position of the Town Clerk, you can therefore return to your other office as per your contract,” reads the letter.
Councillor Tandi went on to appoint the city’s Finance Director, Mr Blessing Chafesuka, as the interim acting Town Clerk until a special council meeting could be held to inform council of the developments.
Cllr Tandi
However, when interviewed over the issue, Cllr Bhiza said there were no managerial changes at the Civic Centre.
“The status quo remains. What the Mayor had done, secretly suspending the acting Town Clerk and appointing the Finance Director to that office, was wrong. It went against the dictates of good corporate governance.
“If the mayor had a case against the acting Town Clerk, he should have brought his concerns to the full council, and then we would deliberate over the issues and come up with a resolution. You must remember that we don’t have an executive mayor in this city, and therefore issues to do with suspending managers or appointing them are done through a special council meeting.
“I am currently the acting mayor and these suspension and appointment letters you are talking about were not even copied to me. I have sat down with the affected managers and have told them that nothing has changed because we need to do things the right way,” thundered Cllr Bhiza.
On Wednesday, Engineer Mtetwa was belting out a song of defiance, insisting that the Mayor doesn’t have the authority to stop him from executing his duties as the acting Town Clerk.
“I am in the office doing my work and if you want to hear anything about that suspension, talk to the Deputy Mayor who is currently the acting Mayor. I am in the office and I am not going anywhere,” he declared.
Speaking from Bulawayo where he is attending a meeting, Councillor Tandi said he did not want to be dragged into ‘unnecessary talk shows’.
“Check that letter, the suspension is in line with Section 139 of the Urban Councils Act, and I had to appoint an acting Town Clerk who is a substantive director.
‘’Anyway, the Deputy Mayor only acts in my absence. You must understand that we don’t have two authorities at Civic Centre. The Deputy Mayor can only act when I give him the authority to do so,” he said.
However, a Mutare-based legal practitioner, Mr Justin Fusire of Mupindu Legal Practitioners, said Councillor Tandi has no executive powers to suspend a Town Clerk, whether a substantive or an interim one.
“It needs a full council to suspend or appoint a Town Clerk. The mayor was elected by the councillors and he has to report back to the councillors before a decision can be made.
‘’He is not an executive mayor, so his decision to suspend the acting Town Clerk and appoint another one is null and void in terms of the law,” said Mr Fusire.
Eng Mtetwa is the second official from the local authority to occupy council’s hottest seat following the untimely death of Mr Joshua Maligwa in January this year.
Dr Anthony Mutara acted as the Town Clerk before being suspended following his arrest by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission on abuse of office charges.
Dr Mutara is out on bail pending trial.
