Marshall Bwanya
Harare –Chegutu mayor, Rydes Machekera, is under fire for keeping the acting town clerk, George Kasamu, in office despite a standing government directive barring officials with pending court cases from work.
Kasamu was summoned to the Kadoma magistrates’ court on 8 October, facing criminal abuse of duty charges under Section 174 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23].
The charges stem from his time as the Chegutu municipality’s human resources manager in 2021.
He allegedly recruited three municipal police officers who did not meet the advertised qualification of five O-Levels, one of whom never sat for the examinations.
Yet, despite a clear government directive barring officials facing criminal proceedings from reporting for duty, Kasamu continues to occupy one of the municipality’s most influential offices.
The controversy centres on two key directives issued by the ministry of Local Government and Public Works, both of which remain in force.
The first, dated 22 February 2022, was issued by then Local Government and Public Works minister, July Moyo, and addressed to all mayors and local authority chairpersons across the country.
The letter, titled “Directive on Reporting for Work While on Bail,” barred senior council officials facing corruption allegations or were on bail from reporting for duty.
“My office has always maintained the unwavering stance that, in the public interest and as a good corporate governance practice, any official who has a matter pending before the courts may not be allowed to continue with their day-to-day operations in council until they have been acquitted by the same courts,” instructed Moyo, in terms of Section 313 of the Urban Councils Act (Chapter 29:15) and Section 155 of the Rural District Councils Act (Chapter 29:13).
This directive was reinforced by a follow-up circular from then permanent secretary of Local Government and Public Works, Zvinechimwe Churu, dated 13 October 2022, which noted that the earlier directive remained legally binding pending a Supreme Court appeal.
“Please take note that the judgment [of 22 September 2022] was appealed against by the ministry in the Supreme Court under case number SC495/22. The appeal suspends the judgment of the High Court. “Effectively, this means that the status remains until the Supreme Court determines the appeal,” instructed Churu.
Residents demand accountability
Residents have accused Mayor Machekera of “double standards” and “wilful defiance” of ministerial instructions.
Several leaked letters from community members show growing frustration with the mayor’s inaction.
One letter from Misheck Kazembe, a local resident, reads: “In terms of Section 313 of the Urban Councils Act and Section 155 of the Rural District Councils Act, it states unequivocally that all employees whose cases have not yet been concluded by the courts are barred from reporting for duty until they have been acquitted.”
“I have on hand a summons for the acting town clerk (Kasamu) to appear before the Kadoma Magistrates’ Court.
“Given the seriousness of the allegations and the ongoing investigations, I urge you to take proactive steps to ensure transparency and accountability,” wrote Kazembe to the mayor. .
He said all allegations should be handled through proper legal and administrative channels to ensure fairness, transparency and consistency.
“We understand that the decision to allow Kasamu to continue working may raise concerns about accountability.
“We take allegations seriously and are committed to cooperating with relevant authorities to ensure a thorough investigation,” he added.
Another Chegutu resident who preferred anonymity lamented that the municipality was in violation of a ministerial directive and legal provisions that promote good governance and accountability by allowing Kasamu to report to work when he has a pending matter before the courts.
“As residents, we were surprised why procedures were not followed according to Minister Moyo’s circular—go to court and then act (sic).
“When I asked the mayor (Machekera) about the criminal charges levelled against Kasamu, he said he does not act on grapevine,” said the resident.
A history of allegations
Kasamu’s name is not new to controversy.
In 2022, he was arrested by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) alongside the revenue accountant, Blandina Kavhayi, over allegations of abuse of office, nepotism, sexual harassment, and tax evasion.
The two were accused of manipulating recruitment processes to favour relatives and friends, misrepresenting managers’ taxable benefits to evade tax, and violating student recruitment policies — allegations that reportedly created a breeding ground for exploitation and abuse.
Machekera defends his decision
In an interview with NewsHub, Machekera downplayed allegations that he had defied a standing directive.
“Kasamu is not on bail; he was simply summoned to court. Do we suspend someone just because they have been summoned?
He was on suspension for three years and was cleared by the Local Government Board, the Office of the President and Cabinet, and even the CID (Criminal Investigation Department) before his appointment as chamber secretary,” said Machekera.
“We have written to the parent ministry seeking advice in light of the existing circular, which does not address situations like this, specifically where someone has merely been called in for questioning. (We will be) guided by their response,” he added..
Governance Experts Weigh In
Harare-based local government governance activist, Precious Shumba, said Machekera’s interpretation of the directive was “legally weak and ethically flawed.”
“The ministry of Local Government and Public Works has a standing ministerial directive to say that any senior employee facing criminal charges must not report for duty, and then you have the situation of acting directors having to report for work for an unlimited duration.
“What the mayor has done is, in essence, showing that the operations of mayors are really about individual choice,” he said.
Shumba, who is also the director of Harare Residents’ Trust (HRT), also criticised the continued reinstatement of senior council officials facing criminal charges, saying the practice fuels corruption and victimisation within local authorities.
“A lot of these officials are acquitted and come back to continue their corruption, so it is not merely about these workers being brought back but the establishment of cartels to run the affairs of our local authorities, and that is the major problem we are confronted with.
Governance expert and Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA) leader Rueben Akili said the controversy surrounding the continued employment of officials facing corruption allegations exposed deep weaknesses in Zimbabwe’s local government legal framework.
“What is very clear,” Akili explained, “is that there are serious gaps in our local government laws.
“These gaps allow individuals implicated in wrongdoing to continue reporting for duty because there is no strong legal provision barring them from doing so,” said Akili.
In recent years, ministerial circulars on corruption and governance have often clashed with councils’ internal processes, leading to confusion, selective enforcement, and accusations of political interference.