There is an article going under the banner of ROHR Zimbabwe claiming that an Extra-Ordinary meeting of the board was held on 7 July 2011 and that Mr Ephraim Tapa (Founder President/Board Chairperson), Mr Tichanzii Gandanga (Secretary General/ Board Secretary) and Mr Ray Muzenda (National Chairperson/Board member) were expelled from the organisation following a vote of no confidence.
On behalf of ROHR Zimbabwe, I wish to state that this message represents an act of mischief horribly gone wrong or simply, a hoax. The message is calculated to hoodwink and mislead our membership and stakeholders and must be ignored. The authors of this malicious document are a suspicious lot, either trying their best to avoid the inevitable impact of the disciplinary measures already underway or just keen to manipulate the organisation for their selfish ends.
In accordance with the ROHR Trust Deed, Constitution and standard practice, a properly constituted meeting involves the Chairperson naming a date after consultation and the Secretary circulating an official notice to all concerned members incorporating the date, time, venue and in most cases, the agenda of the meeting. We are not aware of any notice from the Secretary General which called for the so-called Extra-Ordinary board meeting and neither were we made aware of the venue or the person convening the meeting. A Board meeting is a serious matter and without the reports of the three critical offices namely President, Secretary General and National Chairperson, it reduces such gathering to a beer hall talk. By making such malicious and palpably ridiculous claims, Mr Stendrick Zvorwadza, Ms Grace Mupfurutsa, Mr Ronald Mureverwi and Mr Edgar Chikuvire violated various sections of ROHR Zimbabwe Trust Deed and Constitution and as a consequence, they put the name of the organisation into disrepute. By their act of coming together for the purposes of forming their own group, they all automatically expelled themselves from ROHR Zimbabwe with effect from the date of their so-called meeting: 07/07/2011.
As I was starting the organisation in 2007, I offered the UK-based Ms Grace Mupfurutsa the opportunity to be a Trustee, which she duly accepted. However to this day, Ms Mupfurutsa has not been confirmed as a board member and neither has she attended any board meeting or participated in any structure building activities where she lives in the UK, almost 4 years on. In light of that, the last board meeting of November 2010 subsequently resolved that she be dropped from the board as she had not demonstrated sufficient commitment or taken up the responsibilities of a Trustee, among other reasons. It must be noted that this resolution was carried in the President’s report, which was adopted by all present. Simply put, Ms Mupfurutsa is not a Trustee of ROHR Zimbabwe.
It was also my pleasure to invite Mr Stendrick Zvorwadza to the board and I can confirm that after working with him for a year, the board began to doubt his motives following his failure to account for organisation property entrusted in his care. Suffice is to say Mr Zvorwadza effectively stopped all active involvement with ROHR Zimbabwe after the 2008 Board meeting. In May 2011, Mr Zvorwadza suddenly re-appeared on the scene throwing accusations at all but himself and offering positions to those who were agreed to the idea of supporting him and hell, to those who resisted his moves. In the process, he harassed staff, engaged in gerrymandering activities, threatened officials with arrest citing his blood links to Minister Makone, falsely accused staff of corruption, accused the president of various crimes, made insinuations that he was on a paid mission to deliver ROHR Zimbabwe to the MDC-T to stop Tapa, and on occasions, would visit the office and address workers whilst inappropriately dressed (in a small short trousers) against the organisation’s code of conduct, among many other concerns. As the custodian of the constitution and head of the organisation, I suspended Mr Stendrick Zvorwadza from the offices of Trustee and Vice President of ROHR Zimbabwe on 15 July 2011 pending a board decision on the matters. Please note that ROHR Zimbabwe is apolitical and does not tolerate meddling in party politics.
Mr Ronald Mureverwi is currently suspended from the Secretariat for not attending to his workplace for months and unbecoming behaviour, condoning and aiding unacceptable behaviour by Mr Zvorwadza, among other breaches. That in my view, creates a picture of opportunistic teamwork by the said four former Trustees for reasons of personal gain and elevation for the work that they have not done. The same applies to Mr Edgar Chikuvire, a nephew to Mr Zvorwadza, who also played a pivotal role in bringing about this situation. Mr Mureverwi’s case currently awaits board decision.
The quartet’s unbridled courtship of the press and their unusual desperation for publicity betrays their insidious motives – to destroy the organisation. Suffice is to say, as ROHR Zimbabwe board, we will not be able to respond to any further articles relating to the issues at stake until after the board meeting on 21-22 July. Please be advised that unless communication is from the Chief Spokesperson of the Organisation and representative, Mr Ephraim Tapa, any communication purporting to be from ROHR Zimbabwe shall be of NO interest and NOT representative of the organisation.
In the meantime, ROHR Zimbabwe leadership wishes to assure all members and stakeholders of our unwavering commitment to the cause and objectives of human rights and we will continue to work hard and do our best as always.
Insofar as the newly formed Zimbabwe, We Can Movement, the organisation wishes to draw members attention to its Trust Deed’s Aims and Objectives:
4.1.9 To encourage participation by members of the public in governance issues including their constitutional rights
4.1.11 Network with other civic organisations that share the same objectives and values nationally, regionally and internationally.
Clearly this initiative falls within ROHR Zimbabwe constitutional mandates, hence the huge interest shown by our membership. Please note that the Movement is not a political party.
Those who have been receiving our statements can note that the email address being used to propagate such information is not the organisation’s official email but one created to facilitate these nefarious activities.
Ephraim Tapa
ROHR Zimbabwe Founder/President
For Justice, Peace and Freedom
