MIMOSA Mining Company management has revealed that investigations into an overtime and acting allowance scam that cost the firm $709 000 were completed and the company had begun the recovery process with 37 suspended employees signing acknowledgement of debt forms pending legal processes.
By Allieway Nyoni
Speaking to Southern Eye on the sidelines of the company’s long service and superior performance awards on Friday last week, Mimosa Mine managing director, Fungai Makoni, said the suspended employees were obliged to find the means of servicing the debt.
“What we have done is to make them sign acknowledgement of debt. So if one is able to pay us back through other means without selling one’s property it is up to him. What we did was to tell someone that you owe us this much, do you agree, if he or she agrees then one signs. Now it is up to that person to find means of raising the amount,” he said.
So far, two suspects, Lazarus Madziva and Prosper Vundurai, who left the mine before the scam was unearthed appeared before the Zvishavane Magistrates’ Court.
“When people collude, it is difficult for any system to quickly detect it. A system is only as good as the people who work with it. From our reports, these people colluded from inside and the one who manipulated forged signatures,” he said.
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“When someone forges it avoids detection, hence we had challenges with our system to a great extent. But the good thing is that once we identified it, we were able to quantify the extent of the prejudice and how it happened.”
Makoni said outside the restitution process the law was still to take its course.
“We have taken corrective measures to avoid such things happening in future. It’s a learning process and after the recovery process there are still legal connotations with regards to this issue,” he said.
Makoni also rubbished reports that Mimosa was closing shop soon.
“We might be the smallest in terms of reserves compared to Unki or Zimplats, but we still have about 20 more years of existence at full scale,” he said.