Sibanda, Tibatye Among 154 Zimpapers Workers Retrenched

CapiTalk FM presenter Phathisani Sibanda and station manager Yvonne Tibatye are among 154 employees being retrenched by Zimbabwe Newspapers Group (Zimpapers).

The two were among the senior employees caught up in the company’s latest job cuts, months after they were involved in a controversy over gifts from businessman Wicknell Chivayo.

Chivayo gave US$30,000 in cash during a guest appearance on Sibanda’s CapiTalk FM programme. He said the money was for “lunch” for 30 employees in the radio division.

He also offered Sibanda a 2025 Toyota GD6, while Tibatye received a Toyota Aqua.

The gifts caused problems because Zimpapers has a policy that prevents employees from accepting gifts worth more than US$100 without declaring them.

The company directed the 30 employees to keep US$100 each and ordered that the remaining US$27,000 be returned to Chivayo.

Sibanda and Tibatye later collected the vehicles despite the company’s position on the gifts.

Zimpapers, which employs more than 900 people, says the current retrenchments are part of a restructuring exercise aimed at reducing costs and moving the company towards a “digital first” strategy.

The changes are expected to affect several sections of the company, including Zimpapers Television Network (ZTN).

Umthunywa editor Gugulethu Ncube is also among those affected by the restructuring.

The Bulawayo-based newspaper has already stopped printing and is now available online.

Zimpapers is also expected to make further changes to ZTN as it seeks to cut costs and focus more on digital platforms.

While Sibanda and Tibatye were involved in the earlier gifts controversy, the company has described the latest job cuts as part of its wider restructuring programme.

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