All four Chikomba Rural District Council Citizens’ Coalition for Change (CCC) councillors have been suspended by the Chikomba District Development Coordinator (DCC) Michael Mariga.
The CCC councillors were suspended allegedly for filing a High Court application to declare all council committees null, reported The Mirror.
The councillors, Collen Zvarevashe (Ward 11), Amos Reza (Ward 10), Felix Zhakata (Ward 9) and Ishmael Maukazuva (Ward 12) were suspended during a full council meeting at council offices. Reads the suspension letter:
This note serves to inform you that this office is in sync with a High Court order following the suing of the council by four councillors.
Because of that order, you are being advised to stop calling for any council business the following councillors, Reza Amos, Collen Zvarevashe, Ishmael Maukazuva and Zhakata Felix.
Business for the above-mentioned will only resume after court settlement.
The councillors approached the High Court in Harare seeking an order to nullify all council committees.
They claimed the committees were imposed by the council chairperson Israel Dhikinya without elections being conducted. Part of their application reads:
This application is an application for a decelerator in terms of Section 14 of the High Court Act (Chapter 7: 06).
Precisely the applicants are seeking to have this court declare the appointment of council committees by the 2nd respondent (Dhikinya) ultra vires the standing rules of the Rural District Council and a nullity.
On the 20th of September 2023, a council meeting was held whose agenda was to elect office bearers of different committees in the council …The 2nd respondent after the meeting went away to his office and unilaterally without the input of council members announced the names of all the elected committee members.
The four CCC councillors initially approached Chivhu Magistrates Court but withdrew the application after agreeing to resolve the matter in a full council meeting with ZANU PF councillors and the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Bullen Chiwara.
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