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Tanzania: Ex-Workers Sue Mine
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The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)
16 May 2008
Posted to the web 16 May 2008
Jane Kajoki, Mwanza
A civil case filed by former workers of the defunct Buhemba Gold Mine demanding payment of terminal benefits, comes up for hearing at the High Court in Mwanza on May 29.
About 130 former workers filed the case mid last month demanding over Sh3.8 billion in terminal benefits and disturbance allowances from their former employer.
The case was first mentioned before Justice Anasheri Sumari yesterday.
The workers claim that on January 18, police were deployed at the mine premises to remove all workers.
The commissioner of minerals, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Defence and National Service, attorney general and permanent secretary in the Finance Ministry, are among Government officials cited in the case.
The mine was earlier said to be jointly owned by the defence ministry and a South African firm under a dubious Meremeta company, which is no where to be found in the Business Registration and Licensing Authority (Brela) records.
The workers maintained that the Ministry of Energy and Minerals had promised to pay them terminal benefits and disturbance allowances in 90 days since the day they were laid off.
The ministry's failure to keep its promise made last February before representatives of the workers and minister William Ngeleja, forced them to file the case.
The workers claim that they have badly affected economically as a result of the ministry's failure to pay their dues as they could neither send their families back to their respective villages nor pay school fees for the children.
In December 2006, the firm sent the over 350 workers on a seven-month unpaid leave after the mine ran out of the precious mineral.
Former Musoma district commissioner Saveli Maketa said at the tiem that the decision to close the mine had been made by the Board of Trustees.
Mr Maketa said the board led by the sacked central bank governor Daudi Balali, had, however, retained a few workers to refill holes, re-plant trees and to look after machinery at the mine.
The mine was reallocated to another area and that it would take about seven month to move mining equipment to the new site.
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The mine opened in 2002 with a total investment of Sh18 billion.
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