High Court Halts Auction of Vungu RDC Assets as Wage Dispute, Debt Crisis Deepen

Bulawayo - The Bulawayo High Court has temporarily stopped the auction of critical assets belonging to Vungu Rural District Council (RDC), granting a stay of execution in a case that has laid bare a deepening wage dispute and long-running financial crisis at the local authority.

The intervention came under Case No. HCBC95/26, after the Deputy Sheriff moved to execute an arbitral award linked to outstanding workers’ salaries, resulting in the attachment of key council properties in December 2025.

The assets targeted for sale included a fire tender, mobile clinic vehicle, grader, tractor, dumper, service vehicles and the Chief Executive Officer’s official vehicle, equipment essential for service delivery in the largely rural district.

In an order issued on Friday, 23 January 2026, High Court Judge Justice Ngoni Nduna ruled that, by consent of both parties, the execution in the matter is duly stayed and ordered that the case be postponed to 27 January 2026 at 1415 hours, with no order as to costs.

The ruling halted an auction that was due to take place in Gweru a day earlier.

The attachment of Vungu RDC assets stems from a protracted wage dispute dating back to 2021, when the local authority allegedly failed to comply with a National Employment Council directive requiring salary adjustments for council workers.

After years of stalled engagements, the workers, represented by the Zimbabwe Rural District Councils Workers Union (ZRDCWU), pursued legal enforcement culminating in the registration of an arbitral award and subsequent execution by the Sheriff of Zimbabwe.

While early estimates placed the council’s wage debt at close to US$500 000, ZRDCWU's James Gumbi in December clarified that the verified amount stood at about US$202 000, with the figure expected to rise as salary arrears continue to accumulate.

The dispute has also highlighted tensions over salary disparities within the council, with allegations that senior officials benefited from significant pay increases while lower-paid workers’ adjustments were deferred.

The looming auction triggered an emergency meeting by Vungu RDC councillors amid fears that the loss of essential equipment would cripple service delivery to more than 60 000 residents.

Public experts warned that the disposal of refuse collection and earth-moving machinery could expose communities to serious sanitation challenges, degraded infrastructure and heightened risks of water-borne disease outbreaks.

In parallel with the court proceedings, the panic stricken councilors also reportedly held an emergence meeting soughting urgent intervention from the Office of the President and Cabinet.

The effort was in line with Statutory Instrument 222A of 2025, which temporarily extended the protection of the State Liabilities Act to Vungu RDC, insulating critical public assets from attachment and sale.

The emergency regulations seeking route were however overtaken by developments on the day the auction was scheduled to proceed.

The Ministry of Local Government and Public Works reportedly intervened and paid US$260 000, part of the council’s outstanding obligations, a move legal experts say is mitigatory and could open the door to a structured settlement plan with creditors.