HARARE – CapiTalk FM presenter Phathisani Sibanda and station manager Yvonne Tibatye have been retrenched by the Zimbabwe Newspapers Group, months after they controversially accepted gifts from businessman Wicknell Chivayo in breach of company policy.

The two are among 154 Zimpapers employees being retrenched this week as the state-owned media group battles dwindling advertising revenues and rising operating costs.

Sibanda and Tibatye are among the most high-profile employees affected by the latest job cuts.

Chivayo handed over US$30,000 in cash during a guest appearance on Sibanda’s CapiTalk FM show, saying it was for “lunch” to be shared among 30 employees in the radio division. He separately offered to upgrade Sibanda’s Toyota Aqua to a 2025 Toyota GD6, while Tibatye received a Toyota Aqua.

Under a gifts policy introduced by Zimpapers in 2024 to safeguard journalistic independence, employees are prohibited from accepting gifts worth more than US$100 and are required to declare any gifts to the company.

Zimpapers subsequently directed that each of the 30 employees could keep US$100, with the remaining US$27,000 to be returned to Chivayo.

Sibanda and Tibatye, however, went on to collect the vehicles offered by Chivayo despite the company’s position on the gifts.

Zimpapers, which employs more than 900 people, says the retrenchments are part of a restructuring programme driven by its “digital first” strategy, aimed at strengthening its online offering across its platforms.

Umthunywa editor Gugulethu Ncube is among the senior casualties of the restructuring after she was informed on Monday that her services were no longer required.

The Bulawayo-based Umthunywa has stopped its print edition and is now published exclusively online.

The job cuts are expected to hit Zimpapers Television Network (ZTN), which broadcasts on DStv, particularly hard.

Zimpapers is expected to undertake a major restructuring of ZTN as it seeks to reduce costs and reshape the station around a more digital-focused model.