2018-01-31Staff Report 2 Eveline de Klerk Swakopmund-The former CEO of Usakos town council, Gruzi Goseb who registered a labour case, says the appointment of the town’s new CEO is illegal as he is currently in a labour dispute with the council that needs to be resolved before any appointment is made. Goseb who contacted New Era this week says the town council without his knowledge changed his conditions of employment and opted not to renew his contract, which ended last June. According to Goseb he signed a performance agreement in addition to his employment contract with council when he took office five years ago. The performance contract in particular, according to Goseb, states that council’s decision not to renew his contract should be based on a performance appraisal and should also state reasons why it would not be renewed. “However, council unilaterally decided not to renew my contract last year without giving me valid reasons why and went on to appoint a new CEO,” he said. An arbitration hearing was set initially for October 2 last year according to the labour court documents; however, the hearing was postponed to February 13 for witnesses to be summoned. The mayor of Usakos, Akser Mwafangeyo when contacted about the issue said that the labour issue has nothing to do with the appointment of the new CEO and that it was done in consultation with the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development. “Goseb’s claims are baseless. We simply chose not to renew his contract, as he was not performing. Why would we not renew his contract if he had performed and brought about development to the town?” he said. He added that council followed the right procedures and notified him as legally required, three months in advance that his contract would not be renewed. “In the case of the labour dispute, he was not happy with the witnesses called by council, while there is no law that prohibits council in calling a specific witness. That is why the case was postponed. It could have been resolved already,” said the Mayor. Mwafangeyo also said that the CEO’s position was long overdue and was one of council’s priorities that needed urgent attention as council had been operating without a CEO for a period of time. “I mean we had enough fights. Now we want to develop Usakos. It’s a fresh start for all of us,” he asserted. 2018-01-31Staff Report 2
