via US$528 000 salary for ZESA advisor | The Financial Gazette by Phillimon Mhlanga 5 Feb 2014
AS the salaries scandal in Zimbabwe’s cash-strapped parastatals deepens, the Financial Gazette can reveal that Dennis Magaya, a business strategy consultant who was controversially appointed by State-owned ZESA Holdings’ subsidiary Powertel Communications in 2012, is earning a monthly salary of about US$44 000.
This comes at a time when workers at the company are grappling with low salaries, with peers in other ZESA units earning far less than what Magaya is taking home.
Documents seen by this newspaper indicate that the government-owned internet services provider engaged Magaya on a fixed-term contract which commenced on September 1, 2012. The contract will run up to August 31, 2015.Magaya is currently pocketing a monthly salary of US$25 176,64 plus a bonus of US$18 610,12 which translates into an annual amount of US$528 000. He is entitled to this package up to August this year, and will be eligible to an upward review that could run up to the end of his contract.
Previously, Magaya was earning a monthly salary of US$26 000 and a bonus of US$13 140,59 under phase one of his contract which ran from September 1, 2012 to August 31, 2013.
Phase two of the contract, which runs from September 1, 2014 to August 31, 2015, will see Magaya earning a monthly salary of US$24 145,01 and a monthly bonus of US$20 231. The contract is currently in phase two.
Magaya was engaged by the company to implement a five-year business plan he drafted for Powertel through his company, Rubiem Technologies.
Sources with intimate knowledge of what transpired said Magaya’s appointment was fast tracked by ZESA’s group chief executive officer, Josh Chifamba, and board chairman Francis Chirimuuta, in clear defiance of a State Procurement Board (SPB) resolution that had rebuffed the appointment of Rubiem Technologies.
To avoid conflict of interest, SPB said Magaya and his company could not take part in the implementation of the strategic plan which he had drafted.After SPB turned down the power utility’s request to engage Rubiem Technologies, ZESA decided to engage Magaya in his individual capacity, arguing that its subsidiary would generate millions of dollars in revenue through the provision of data carrier, mobile internet and connectivity services through his assistance.
His appointment sucked in former finance director, Warner Mtisi, who doubled up as the company secretary. Mtisi was fired two days prior to Magaya signing his contract on September 7, 2012 after he resisted the move to appoint Magaya on such a hefty package.
Former managing director, Samuel Maminimini was also sacked after he questioned some irregularities on the issue.
It is, however, understood that Mtisi has since won his case at the labour court although Chifamba is said to have appealed against the court ruling.
Magaya, who was in South Africa when contacted by the Financial Gazette on Tuesday, was unwilling to discuss the issue, saying the managing director, Patrick Chivaura, was well-placed to do so.
“I can’t comment on the issue now,” said Magaya. “Give me a call in 30 minutes or you can contact the managing director (Chivaura) for more details.”
No comment could be obtained from Chivaura as he was said to be in a meeting.
The Financial Gazette could not immediately establish how much the managing director was earning as efforts to get clarification on the issue were fruitless.
Some sources, however, said Chivaura was taking home around US$4 500 per month.
The rot at the institution comes after senior executives at the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), the Premier Services Medical Aid Society (PSMAS) and the Harare City Council have been exposed for earning mega salaries of between US$36 000 and US$230 000 per month.
PSMAS chief executive officer Cuthbert Dube, who has been retired, and ZBC boss Happison Muchechetere, who has been suspended, earned about US$230 000 and US$40 000 per month respectively.
When benefits are factored in, Dube earned half a million dollars every month.
Dube received allowances equivalent to his monthly basic salary of US$230 000 plus a bonus of over US$1 million in December 2013.
The Minister of Media, Information and Broadcasting Services, Jonathan Moyo is understood to have written to Muchechetere and ZBC’s Elliot Kasu (general manager-finance and administration) advising them of the termination of their salaries and benefits.
State enterprises are being systematically looted by executives allegedly conniving with senior government officials while the economy stagnates.
Audited financial records of parastatals have not been made public on time as enshrined in the Constitution. When they are made available, they are always years behind.
COMMENTS
If this guy is contracted by the government internet provider then its not Zesa but TelOne. TelOne rents fibre cables capacity from Powertel for internet signals around the country before feeding them to the oceanic cables which link us to the relevant servers around the world.
I think this report has some mistakes,therefore it would not be professional to comment on Powertel using the information given here.
Zesa as a parent company needs serious transformation to make it viable.
Zesa salaries and allowances are not in line with the current economic situation.
Preposterous!
Whether its NET ONE OR Zesa,MIXED RACE,this is looting.Are you part of the deal?
Not at all because I want facts to support my statement.I would never do this kind of thing at the expense of the masses.
It has been known for years that business ethics etc do not exist with Zimbabwean managers. This embarassing situation is damaging to us but alas our so called buffoon leaders dönt care a hoot.
How about the real zesa bosses ,why hide their salaries behind tel one?
Written Mangoma all over it…
Looting continues. Hapana chitsva apa munhu wose anedzinoshanda mumusoro make anoziva chokwadi kuti vanhu ivava veZANU PF vose ndozvavarikuita posepose pavari, kubva 1980. Hapana nyaya kana chitsva apa.
Only those fools who all along have been believing the ‘mythological sanctions’, which are used by Mugabe to kuita zvituta zveZANU PF chikuku vata-vata, as the cause of Zim’s economic problems will consider this as news.
Its simply ZANU PF looting, not any isolated looting, as the ZANU PF factional struggles would wish to paint it. It is only factionalism at play to pretend that there is any company state controlled ZANU PF functionaries where looting is not the order of the day. We know there is none.
This Dennis Magaya is a Man with a history of looting. He has been working as a Consultant for Reward Kangai’s NETONE for some time and was being used as a conduit to loot under the disguise of ” Consulting for an MTN buyout which never materialised. Kangai is a habitual thief and he had to “hire” an equally habitual and selfish Engineer as a front. For ZESA he has been a looting alongside Josh. He adds no value at all . Appears very busy but out to strip whether its from a consulting perspective or from a Procurement perspective. I have been with NETONE and now with ZESA and know exactly whats going on. Unfortunately the moment we try to say something we are victimised by the board. Infact Magaya although using his ZIM ID in Zimbabwe, has a fraudulently obtained RSA ID and passport . The idea is to loot Zim enterprises with conivance with the MDs or CEOs and externalize monies out in RSA and beyond. Right now he operates using Zim IDs as he is appropriately a Zimbabwean but his directorship of RubieM registered in RSA he uses his fraudulently acquired RSA papers where he claims to have been born in RSA , has a South African birth certificate, ID and passport etc just as well with zim birth certificates. So whilst in RSA he uses RSA fraudulent papers . In zim he uses his zim papers. He is a selfish Fraudster of note and one wonders with the litany of many qualified Engineers in Zimbabwe why he keeps being seconded around quasi-govt institutions. The reason is that he is a willing conduit to loot these institutions as a front for Josh and Kangai.