via Government sincerity questioned as mega salaries continue | SW Radio Africa by Mthulisi Mathuthu on Wednesday, April 30, 2014
The MDC-T shadow Minister for Justice, Jessie Majome, has said the official crusade against corruption is mere ‘political posturing’ and people should not expect any positive results because the ‘whole government, including the president, are complicit.’
Majome’s comments come after it emerged that the high earning CEOs are still getting the same ‘obscene salaries’ and benefits whose details shocked Zimbabweans. Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa had initially issued a directive limiting salaries of public executives to $6,000 per month and last week, Chinamasa said he was still awaiting any legal challenges to his order.
But Majome told SW Radio Africa’s Cutting Edge programme that Chinamasa’s threat was ‘empty rhetoric.’ She said as a lawyer Chinamasa was obviously aware that his order had no legal binding and was therefore ‘posturing.’
She said: ‘The minister is aware of the legal implications of contracts of employment and the labour law in general. You cannot just issue an order and say just because I am a minister stop this salary.’ She added: ‘It would have been an unfair labour practice to just stop people’s salaries arbitrarily. Processes that include consultations will have to be followed to stop these mega salaries.’
Majome said the process of scrapping the ‘obscene salaries’ should be accompanied by an inquiry into how they were approved. She said it was inconceivable that President Mugabe and his entire government were not complicit in the scam.
Three months ago the MDC-T MP for Makokoba, Gorden Moyo, said Zimbabweans should not expect any of the disgraced executives to be prosecuted because they were earning some of the money on behalf of the service chiefs and operatives in the President’s Office. Moyo said the CEOs were instructed to pass on some of their earnings to individuals in the army and the CIO, a move meant to ensure the loyalty of the secret services. Around that time Prosecutor General Johannes Tomana also said he would not prosecute any of the exposed executives because there was no case against them.
But according to Majome the salaries scam, in which some executives were found to be earning as much as $500,000, is ‘criminal.’ She said prosecution was achievable under the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform Act) which she says outlaws abuse of office. She said even if the salaries had been approved, the executives were guilty of failing to advise the boards to make decisions that are in the best interest of the public.
Majome further urged members of the Premier Service Medical Aid Society to seek legal advice and take action against former CEO Cuthbert Dube. Details of Dube’s salary of $500,000-plus stunned everyone. Majome said Dube’s salary was ‘untenable.’
COMMENTS
This mujome woman is a classical idiot. One moment she condemns these criminal mega salaries and the next she condemns chinamasa for giving a directive to stop these criminal salaries. Mujome talks of this chinamasa directive as an unfair labour practice. Where is the unfairness when someone is stopping thieves? I just fail to understand the mentality of this very confused woman. One would have thought that she was going to condemn chinamasa for not locking up these criminals and throw the keys into the deepest part of lake kariba or better still, into the victoria falls gorge
@Mutakura: Pfungwa dzako mutahura wakavora chaiwo – iwe Mutakura. Sei uchirashika mu 1 room kunge fuza kudaro kudaro?
The hon. MP is a lawyer & is simply raiseing a point of law with regard to Chinamasa’s pronouncement. After all, she is not the 1st one to say it for that matter. Many lawyers 7 even laymen have said it before; its simply a matter of labour law which is very much know to most workers.
All what the hon MP is saying is what Chinamasa is saying has no legal basis; they may obey or choose not to obey his instruction & legally Chinamasa would do nothing becoz his proclamation is outside the law. Is that too difficulty to understand for 4 u Mutakura?
Kana Chinamasa achikwanisa kumisa masalaries acho zvejambanja ngaaamise tivone but so far hapana mutemo waari kushandisa – ndicho chokwadi chiripo. It doesn’t matter who is sayi it – MDC or ZANHU – its a fact.
Saka kamiswa here masalaries acho? We all know the looting continues and your Chinamasa knows it. So since they to get those salaries despite Chinamasa’s proclamation is it Majome’s problem then?
Why are they not arrested if Chinamasa’s pronouncements have any legal force? Ndimi vanhu vanongogona kuuchirira mavoko zvese zvese zvangotaugwa naMugabe or naMinister without applying brain kuti zvikutaurwa zvinoita here kana kuti kwete. ndime vaya vokuwombera after being promised kuvakirwa bridge nepasinakana karwizi zvako.
Hon majome is saying Chinamasa as a lawyer knows fully well that his pronouncements are a legal nullity. She even goes further to advise how those people could still be brought to book legally, using legal instruments that are already in place. But despite that Chinamasa knows such legal instruments well he doesn’t want to apply them. All what he continues to do is issuing empty threats which are legally void.
So, who is being stupid here – Chinamasa or anyone else who is just advising on points of law?
Since when has Chinamasa or Zanu obeyed the law? Just cap the salaries and tell them to go to hell if they want more! Let them take it to the courts who are in the President’s pocket. You can quote from labour law or the law at large-it makes no difference in Zimbabwe. For once Chinamasa use zanu’s flagrant disregard for the law to the nation’s advantage and tell these leeches to shut the hell up or they are free to take their immoral and reprehensible greed elsewhere!!
Unfortunately for the looters a as much Zanu pf as Chinamasa is. And for all we know Zanu pf people only apply the extra-legal route to those who are NOT ZANU PF – or at best to those who are ‘less’ zanu pf, since some people are more ‘zanu’ pf than others. The question you Jono u may need to ask yourself is whether the likes of Muchechetere and Cashbert are less zanu pf than Chinamasa. if the answer is no; then forget the zanu pf jambanja style – only the law might work.
500,000 per month and no tax paid, Pasi is going after beggars and street urchins to pay tax while his mates on obscene salaries pay nothing????
Vari mbava.
And this lot have the audacity to try to force new wage laws for workers based on productivity! Jail these thieves now – or better still send the to join EFF…
Dream on no on the continent will jail them they too poop scared because they will turn around and say what about you!
Pasi is covering up for his shamwaris!!!!
Zvakangova zvekubatana kumeso. Hapana chinobuda apa.
ZIMBABWE IS JUST LIKE THE MALAYSIAN AIRCRAFT THAT DISAPPEARED.FLYING ON AUTO PILOT ,IN NO DIRECTION WITH NO PURPOSE.EVENTUALLY IT IS GOING TO COME DOWN .