Eight shorlisted for Gweru town clerk post

GWERU City Council has shortlisted eight candidates for the post of town clerk which fell vacant following the dismissal of Ms Elizabeth Gwatipedza in 2019.

The local authority has since then been operating without a substantive town clerk, a development that residents say is contributing to poor service delivery.

Last year the council placed an advert in the media inviting candidates to apply to fill the vacant post and the closing date was December 4.

A total of 24 people applied for the job but only four met the requirements and council had to re-advertise the post.

At the close of the January 3 deadline for new applicants, eight candidates were then invited for interviews set for Wednesday next week.

In an interview, Gweru mayor Councillor Martin Chivhoko confirmed the new date for interviews.

He said three of the candidates who include the acting town clerk Mr Livingstone Churu, are council employees.

“Council will conduct the interviews on February 14 after shortlisting eight candidates and the best three will then be submitted to the Local Government Board for final interviews,” said Clr Chivhoko.

Ms Gwatipedza was fired for allegedly refusing to submit to council her contract of employment and the contracts of other heads of departments.

After her dismissal, Gweru City Council appointed its chamber secretary Mr Vakai Douglas Chikwekwe as the acting town clerk before he later resigned alleging persecution and victimisation by the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) councillors.

Before his resignation, Mr Chikwekwe had been on suspension following his arrest by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc).

He was accused of criminal abuse of office but the matter was withdrawn before plea when he appeared in court.

Mr Chikwekwe was replaced by the city’s finance director Mr Churu.