Makomo manager ‘manufactures’ employees contract ‘forges’ signature

court gavel justice

Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
MAKOMO’s human resources manager, John Rukara, has appeared in court charged with forgery after he allegedly manufactured a contract and forged an employee’s signature.

The coal miner is locked in a long standing court battle with a former plant operator Mr Solomon Tshuma who was “unfairly” dismissed after three years of employment. During those three years he was allegedly working without signing any contract.

Makomo Resources and contractor, Shangani Crushers, were supposed to pay terminal benefits and Rukava allegedly forged a contract to avoid paying Mr Tshuma whose period of employment entitled him to full benefits in terms of labour laws.

The allegedly forged contract was supposed to appear as if Mr Tshuma was on a three months contract hence not eligible for terminal benefits.

An arbitrator had ordered that Mr Tshuma should be paid his outstanding salaries from the date of dismissal and be reinstated. The figure according to Mr Tshuma, has risen to around $140 000.

The arbitrator said if reinstatement was not possible, he should be paid damages equivalent to 36 months salaries.

Prosecutors charged Rukara after a forensic audit unearthed that he manufactured a contract and forged Mr Tshuma’s signature to purport that he was on fixed three-month contract.

Rukara pleaded not guilty to the charges and is awaiting judgment by Hwange magistrate, Miss Sharon Rosemani.

According to State papers, Mr Tshuma was employed as a plant operator at Shangano Cruchers, one of Makomo Resources’ contractors.

“Mr Tshuma was employed as a plant operator and was dismissed from work in 2014 whereupon he dragged the company to the arbitrator.

“The accused, determined not to pay the award, allegedly forged a contract to appear as if Mr Tshuma was on three months’ fixed contract to avoid paying him full terminal benefits,” said prosecutors.

The court was told that a forensic report showed that the contract was fake.

Mr Tshuma told the court that he was supposed to earn $1 900 per month as a plant operator after Makomo general manager Mr Kuda Nyabonda engaged him.

“Makomo had no metallurgical department and when they bought a new crushing plant engineers failed to operate it because it needed a metallurgical expert of which I was the only one.

“The general manager (Mr Nyabonda) approached me whereupon I was given a company car while my salary was pegged at $1 900 per month because this was a senior position. When I asked for a contract Mr Nyabonda said there was no need for it since he had directly engaged me but after a couple of months they reverted back to my old salary,” said Mr Tshuma.

It is alleged that at some point when the machine broke down the company’s engineers failed to fix it and a consultant was invited from South Africa who could not fix it as well.

Mr Tshuma was relieved of his duties without salary or terminal benefits after fixing the plant hence the court process.

@ncubeleon

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