HARARE – Former ZBC CEO Happison Muchechetere, suspended by the state broadcaster in 2014 and then sacked in 2015 over corruption allegations, remains ZBC employee, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday.
Justices Elizabeth Gwaunza, Lavender Makoni, and Tendai Uchena upheld his appeal after the High Court ruled in ZBC’s favour, the top court deciding in part that “he remains an employee until the state broadcaster terminates his contract properly,” his lawyer Professor Lovemore Madhuku said.
The full judgement had not yet been published late Friday, a day after the Supreme Court judges gave their ruling.
Muchechetere was suspended in 2014 following his arrest accused of buying an outside broadcast van from China at an inflated price after circumventing tender procedures.
The ZBC sacked him in 2015 after a disciplinary panel chaired by former High Court judge James Devittie found him guilty of misconduct.
Muchechetere, who also faced criminal charges, sued the ZBC at the High Court but the court found in the public broadcaster’s favour, prompting his appeal to the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court heard his appeal last year, but judgement was only handed down on Thursday.
The judgement leaves the ZBC exposed to a huge financial claim of backdated allowances and salaries by Muchechetere, who is now head of Channel Dzimbahwe, a new TV channel licenced in November last year, but which is yet to go live.
The ZBC appointed Adelaide Chikunguru as its new CEO in June this year.
