The Sunday News
Roberta Katunga Acting Business Editor
THE post of National Railways of Zimbabwe general manager will be filled soon with about 40 prospective candidates having applied to head the struggling parastatal to replace Air Commodore (Retired) Mike Karakadzai who died late in 2013 in a car accident.The loss-making entity which at its peak in 1998 used to carry goods in excess of 18 million tonnes compared to 3,7 million tonnes carried in 2011 has attracted massive interest from candidates across the country.
However, the number of applicants has raised questions on the real interests of the applicants with experts saying it could either be rent seeking or a genuine keenness to save the parastatal, although it is common practice for people to view parastatals as easy cash cows despite operational and financial problems in the said company.
In an interview with Sunday Business, NRZ board chairman Engineer Alvord Mabena, said the parastatal was in the process of compiling the applications as well as short listing candidates for interviews.
“We will be finalising the short list at our board meeting which will be held at the end of this month and from there we will be moving on to the process of setting a date for the interviews,” said Eng Mabena.
According to the parastatal’s requirements, the candidate shall provide strategic leadership to the organisation and ensure that it makes its meaningful contribution to the Zimbabwe economy and that of the sub-region as well as be results-oriented and able to spearhead an ambitious and transformative NRZ turnaround programme.
The development comes at a time when the railway concern received a major boost in its efforts to turn around its fortunes after the Government finally secured a US$750 million loan facility from the Development Bank of South Africa for its rehabilitation.
Speaking on the loan facility and what the parastatal had done or intended to do with it, Eng Mabena said they were still to resume development of the exercise as most people had been away on holiday as the project involved a lot of stakeholders that include Government, workers and the public.
Eng Mabena said the amount came as a result of the determination of the needs of the parastatal.
“Now that holidays are over, it is time to move the process forward. This is a big project that is being taken seriously and details will evolve as we begin the New Year. We are anxious to progress with speed,” he said.
He said the US$750 million would be used for system rehabilitation that touches on everything that makes NRZ work to make a modern system like infrastructure, information system as well as human capital.
Experts indicate the parastatal requires about US$1,9 billion in the long-term to be fully revitalised and transformed while in the short term, the NRZ would need US$460 million to restore the infrastructure and equipment to acceptable levels.
Reports were abound that the NRZ wanted to retrench 6 000 workers, about 86 percent of its workforce to cut running costs as it is struggling to pay workers.
The company owes workers more than US$55 million in unpaid salaries.
The parastatal, once the epicentre of the southern African rail network and transport system, has been struggling with operations due to underfunding and obsolete equipment with the 470 km rail track between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls now seen as a death trap with three train derailments recorded last year on that line.
The line needs a complete overhaul to the tune of about US$50 million.
