Bosso employee demands reinstatement

HIGHLANDERS’ long serving finance officer Sihlalisiwe Mnkandla has through her lawyers demanded that her suspension from duty be lifted forthwith and that she gets her pay and benefits.

Mnkandla was suspended in November last year for alleged insubordination and suspected fraud.

She is accused of failing to avail financial documents requested by auditors looking into the club’s books for the 2023 financial year.

The club took exception to what they considered insubordination after last year’s delay allegedly caused by her when she dragged her feet when asked to make available finance office documents.

This year auditors wanted to start the exercise early and were shocked to meet her at the door leaving at the appointment time.

Under then under-fire treasurer Busani Mthombeni who eventually quit, the club eventually got members to browse through the accounts months into the season meaning the club was operating without a budget, an unprecedented move in the club’s history.

This appeared to rile the executive and board who were left with egg on their face after they failed to present accounts for 2022 at the club’s annual general meeting in January last year.

Mnkandla is indicted of paying herself more than US$700 on different occasions allegedly on a US$5 airtime voucher.

As if that is not enough, Mnkandla is further accused of “stealing” club money to buy fuel for personal use.

Mnkandla was set to appear before for a disciplinary hearing on December 5, 2023, in what was expected to be a bombshell investigation set to expose alleged gross leakages of funds at the football institution.

In a letter dated January 23, 2024 that was addressed to Highlanders incumbent secretary-general Morgen Dube and was gleaned by this publication, on behalf of Mnkandla, Calderwood, Bryce Hendrie and Partners wrote:

“We are instructed by our client that she is employed by Highlanders Football Club in the position of Finance Officer. It is our further instructions that on 28 November 2023, the employer suspended our client without pay and benefits in terms of SI 15/2006 alleging certain acts of misconduct against her.

“In terms of the law, the suspension is in breach of its contract of employment in that the employee has been on suspension for a period of almost two (2) months. Our client’s instructions are that she wishes to hold the employer to the contract of employment. We have consequently been instructed to demand, as we hereby do, that the suspension be lifted forthwith and that our client’s pay and benefits be paid to her.”

The legal practitioners added that: “In the event that the suspension is not lifted and she is not paid her salary and benefits within four (4) days of this letter, we will proceed to institute legal proceedings against the employer for appropriate relief. We hope that this will not be necessary and that you will honour our client’s contract of employment.”

Repeated efforts to get a comment from Highlanders on what delayed Mnkandla’s hearing and other disciplinary procedures were fruitless as board, executive and secretariat were in a meeting, the last one before Sunday’s expected to be explosive annual general meeting.

-@FungaiMuderere