Arrest PSMAS looters: Workers

via Arrest PSMAS looters: Workers Wednesday, 29 January 2014 zbc.co.zw

Civil servants who subscribe to the Premier Service Medical Society (PSMAS) say they feel shortchanged as they were being turned away by some medical institutions due to the society’s failure to pay off its debts yet the executive was earning hefty salaries.

The civil servants say PSMAS’ poor handling of public funds has compromised the health of its subscribers, the majority of whom are government workers.

In an interview with the ZBC News, Zimbabwe Teachers Union of Zimbabwe CEO, Sifiso Ndlovu said the already fired PSMAS CEO, Cuthbert Dube and the entire management should be brought to book for looting members’ subscriptions.

“The board, which also approved these weird packages, should do the honourable thing to resign. Dr Dube should account for all this. The government should carry on with its probing of parastatals to reveal the rot in these government institutions,” he said.

Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) Programmes and Communications Officer, Enock Paradzayi, however, said retiring Dr Dube without taking any legal action will be shortchanging subscribers who sacrificed their little monthly earnings to invest on their health only to fatten a few individuals’ pockets.

“We are not at all happy, we are waiting for the action the government is going to take,” said Paradzayi.

A local lawyer, Dumisani Mtombeni also believes that merely dismissing a person who is accused of gross mismanagement that borders on criminality is not enough.

Dr Dube, who has been at the helm of the country’s largest medical aid society for 24 years was sent on retirement on Monday the 27^th of January while the PSMAS Board Chairperson, Meisie Makeletso Namasasu was dismissed.

The medical aid society has a US$38 million debt.