The Sunday News
Tinomuda Chakanyuka, Senior Reporter
DISGRUNTLED civil servants are seeking President Mugabe’s intervention on loan sharks that are deducting money from their salaries through the Salary Services Bureau (SSB)’s stop order system ostensibly to service non-existent loans without prior approval from the workers.
The Government workers have also written to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Dr John Mangudya, after finding no joy with their employer, the Civil Service Commission, whom they had initially engaged on the same issue.
One of the companies that has been fingered in the alleged scam is the now liquidated McDowells Pvt Ltd owned by Mr Member Chipamba.
In a statement, the Progressive Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe, which is part of the Apex Council, said a letter, asking for a probe into the matter, has been delivered to the Office of the President.
“We have successfully delivered our letter to the Office of President Mugabe. We have also delivered a copy of the same letter to the Office of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Dr Mangudya.
“Our fervent hope is that these offices will make a thorough investigation into this Chipamba issue who owns McDowells Pvt Ltd Company, which is a pyramid scheme. Our hope is they will spare some time from their busy schedules to bring this matter to finality,” reads the statement.
The teacher organisation vowed to fight the matter “to its logical end” as some civil servants were taking home as little as $0,76 after the deductions.
“This McDowells saga will be pursued to its logical conclusion with the precision of a butcher’s cleaver and the force of a hippopotamus.
“Honestly, how can the Salaries Services Bureau (SSB) allow McDowells to deduct almost all of some of our colleagues’ salaries leaving them with as little as $0,76 on their payslips,” the union said.
PTUZ said civil servants were not satisfied with the response given by the Secretary of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Mr Ngoni Masoka, whom they had initially engaged on the matter.
Mr Masoka said the Government could not intervene on the case involving McDowells as the issue had been ruled on by the courts.
He asked the affected workers to engage the provisional liquidator who had been appointed by the High Court to recover debts on behalf of the liquidated McDowells.
PTUZ said, “The response we received from the Secretary of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare as we reported previously was that the aggrieved teachers must engage the provisional liquidator of R.J. C Executors Pvt Ltd and reach a consensus on the amount of money to be deducted from their salaries.
“The question is how can these teachers approach the provisional liquidator for consensus when she has already proceeded to effect deductions of such magnitude by deducting almost what they earn, leaving them with virtually nothing to subsist on?”
Several civil servants, mostly teachers, claim they have been made to pay monthly premiums to service loans from McDowells which they would not have taken.
Those that took loans from the company claim that the loan shark continues to deduct money from their salaries despite them having finished paying off the loans. @irielyan
