The ManicaPost
Abel Zhakata Senior Reporter
MUTARE City Council will next week re-advertise the vacant Town Clerk’s job after the Local Government Board rejected two of the leading shortlisted candidates as unfit to occupy the demanding position.
Mayor Councillor Tatenda Nhamarare revealed this week that the local authority decided to re-advertise the post as there was no way they could settle for the remaining applicants who scored poorly during the interviews.
“The two leading applicants Messrs Christian Sithole and Ronnie Dube were rejected by the Local Government Board for various reasons. Mr Sithole who topped during our interviews was rejected on the basis that he did not have senior managerial experience in local governance while Mr Dube is said to have an unresolved disciplinary case with his former employer, Tsholostho Rural District Council.
“So, we were given an option to either come up with another shortlist which had names of those who occupied number three spot up to number five. Current Rusape Town Secretary Mr Joshua Maligwa was in third position followed by Mr Farirai Gutu and Mr Owen Masimba from Gweru. As council we sat down and deliberated on the issue and after serious considerations resolved to re-advertise the post because we could not pick a candidate from people who did badly when we interviewed them,” said Cllr Nhamarare and added:
“We want the best person to run this city and we thought it unwise to select a person from people who did not impress us in the first place. Therefore, we agreed — as full council — to start afresh and look for the best candidate from the job market. Starting next week we are going to flight adverts in the local newspapers. Our target is to finish the process by year end and we hope that the new Town Clerk will start work in 2017 and help us move the city ahead,” he said.
The cash strapped Mutare City Council wants a dedicated and experienced chief executive officer to put it back on track.
Currently, the local authority is failing to provide water, rehabilitate roads and collect garbage because of a poor rates collection system that has resulted in massive financial bottlenecks. Workers have gone for years without salaries because council is collecting less than 50 percent of what it bills every month.
