MIRROR REPORTER

MASVINGO – Dismissed Masvingo City Engineer Tawanda Gozo made a surprise return to work today after he was dismissed three years ago.
Workers were busy clearing and cleaning his office this morning so that he could start using it. Gozo was dismissed for alleged incompetency.
His return means that ratepayers would cough out salaries, allowances and leave days which may run into tens of thousands of US$. Accountability in local authorities throughout the country is lax as expenditure figures are rarely in the public domain.
Acting Town Secretary Vitalis Shonhai referred questions to Mayor Aleck Tabe whose mobile phone went unanswered.
Gozo refused to comment when contacted by The Mirror.
Reliable sources told The Mirror that Gozo reported for work at 8am armed with a letter from Lovemore Madhuku Law Firm.
“He (Gozo) showed up for work with a letter from his lawyers and told us that he should begin work. Only council can reinstate him. Council resolved to mutually terminate his contract and the matter is yet to be brought to finality,” said the source.
Efforts to get a comment from Jacob Matumbe of Madhuku Law Firm were futile.
Council passed a resolution on July 23, 2024, to seek mutual termination of the contract. The amount was supposed to have tabled for discussion after two weeks.
Gozo appealed against his dismissal at the Local Government Board and won. The High Court in Masvingo dismissed the LGB decision but the board stuck to its guns.
The High Court had ordered for the re-trial of the matter.