Top officials in the City of Harare are reportedly resisting salary cuts after Mayor Jacob Mafume announced that the council has frozen payments of high salaries to its executives while negotiations are ongoing.
Suspended town clerk Hosiah Chisango is reported to be receiving a US$27,000 salary and large perks, even though his contract has expired.
Mathew Marara, Chisango’s assistant, is also reportedly receiving a substantial salary.
An official at Town House told NewsDay on Monday that the top executives are pushing back against the proposed pay cuts. Said the official:
They are writing to the acting town clerk engineer Phakamile Mabhena and they are going to quote previous cases where Chingombe and Kwenda won their cases against salary cuts but the two won because their salaries were approved by council.
It is difficult for Marara and Chisango to win the cases as their salaries were not approved by Harare City Council.
They are resisting pay cuts and they are defiant and we are going to see a major fight at Harare City Council.
Harare Residents Trust director, Precious Shumba, said on Monday that the top officials should resign, or residents will protest against them. He said:
They must not resist, they have an option to go and look for new jobs because we are suffering in Harare because of poor service delivery.
If they refuse, they should help themselves by leaving Harare City Council because there are competent people who are willing to work at Harare City for half the salary of those who are giving themselves hefty packages.
We cannot be held at ransom because of the need for good living, if they continue to hold us at ransom, then we are going to protest.
Mafume said some executives were marrying every year due to their large salaries. He added that if they resisted salary cuts, they would be let go from the organisation to enjoy their lives with their wives.
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