Exposed: Council boss blows

Kauma was also accused of lying to central government that 85% of households in Chiredzi had running water.

Residents also demanded an explanation of how Kauma allegedly acquired many houses in the town within a short space of time.

Suspension lifted

Kauma’s suspension was lifted after barely three months with reports saying the engineer had been charged with insubordination and was warned before being reinstated.

Residents said they had received the news of Kauma’s con rmation to the post of town secretary with shock.

Meanwhile, Kauma has nonetheless landed the highest post in the council although controversy seems to follow him.

Last month Kauma clashed with councillors in a full council meeting after fellow top managers tried to push councillors to pass a resolution to buy them luxury vehicles at a cost way above the agreed gures in the council’s 2024 budget.

The councillors, led by Philimon Muchaendepi and Jameson Charumbira, refused to pass the resolution which also entailed that council would borrow US$$278 116,00 from the local authority’s estate account into the corporate account from where the vehicles would be funded.

Muchaendepi maintained his position when contacted by Truth Diggers.

“We have many projects, but they just stop half way because the funds are then diverted,” he said.

“We currently have a project in Lowlands. But my fear is that it will also stop half way if we continue focusing on trivial matters. We cannot ask for a loan to purchase cars. It will not bene t the residents.”

Finance and general purpose committee chairperson Vimbai Ushe proposed in that meeting that the local authority should rst seek Cabinet approval if they were to purchase the vehicles at a cost above the budgeted gure.

But audit committee chairperson Sekai Njanjure opposed the proposal saying council should just wait for approval of the existing budget and then buy the vehicles at the agreed cost. “We are now confused,” she said. “The gures that are being proposed here are di erent from those that we budgeted for in the 2024 budget”.

The meeting was then openly told that there was intention from management to in ate the budgeted cost of Kauma’s vehicle from the agreed US$85 000 to US$115 000.

Muchaendepi vehemently resisted the plan to force council to adopt this new resolution.

Kauma tried to defend the move, saying the luxury vehicles were part of the conditions of service for the top managers “in order to motivate them in executing their duties properly”.

But the councillors would have none of it.

They said there was need to deliver better service delivery to the residents before council could pamper executives with expensive cars.

Poor service delivery

Chiredzi Town Council has been facing unrelenting pressure from its residents over deteriorating service delivery.

Though council engaged residents on how it intended to utilise the US$6,5 million it received in devolution funds, service delivery continues to decline.

The town, famed for being the largest sugar-producing area in Zimbabwe, is also battling erratic power and water supplies.

Govt probe

Findings of an investigation launched by the government in 2016 were only published last year. The investigation covered the period 2013 to 2018.

According to the ndings of the investigation, the late town secretary Charles Muchatukwa allegedly acquired a US$15 000 low-density house from council, a gure which was ex