The company last week fired its long serving Chief Executive Burombo Mudumo, Nesbert Gufu (Financial Director) and Tonderai Chipere (Treasurer).
 
Highly placed sources in the company’s senior management said the three were being accused of misappropriating more than US$10 million.
 
They said the fired managers were given marching orders after the company had failed to pay workers’ salaries for the past three months, struggled to procure flour supplies, and failed to settle company procurement bills to several suppliers.
 
They said a share holder, Mr Fredrick Mutandi was now running the show while the company was investigating the fired three senior managers.

“Business is at halt since last month with the company failing to procure flour. We everyday go there to just sit because there is no production. The company has indicated to us that it is unable to pay us our salaries its owes us for three months and we are planning to take legal action against it because we cannot survive without being paid,” said one of the senior workers who declined to be named.
 
Lobels managing director Mr Lemmy John Chikomo when the company started facing viability problems in May said:

“We have pledged to finish paying our workers by May 25 and at the same time we are also prepared to pay them their May salaries.
 
“We would like to urge our workers to bear with the company and continue to come to work so that the challenges we are currently facing are not worsened,” he said.

Beyond the closure of Lobels, Zimbabwe is faced with a sharp rise in bread price whose cost is predicted to double before Christmas this year

By ZIMEYE