THE Zimbabwe National Editors’ Forum (Zinef) yesterday suspended chairman Brian Mangwende on allegations of abusing the organisation’s funds.
BY STAFF REPORTER
Mangwende was immediately replaced by his deputy Njabulo Ncube until the next annual general meeting in 2016.
Editors who attended the Zinef special annual general meeting in Harare yesterday said Mangwende, who was absent during the meeting, came under fire from delegates for “borrowing money” for personal use from the forum’s coffers.
But Mangwende dismissed the suspension as “null and void”, describing it as a “kangaroo meeting” as it had editors from community newspapers.
He said he was singled out for standing firm against manipulation of the agenda of Zinef by donors.
“Those who came to this decision can only be pamphlet writers masquerading as bona fide journalists,” Mangwende charged. He claimed the Zinef members who passed the no-confidence vote against him had associate and not full membership status.
Ncube, the former Media Institute of Southern Africa chairman, said his immediate task would be to clean up the image of the organisation and would soon engage editors in the wake of the Supreme Court labour judgment which has not spared editors and journalists.
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Ncube also promised to engage stakeholders to clean Zinef’s image tattered by bad publicity during the Mangwende era.
Ncube said he would also work to mobilise funds for the organisation.
Sixteen members voted for Mangwende’s suspension while six were against the move.
Mangwende was in February accused of illegally withdrawing $2 200 raising a storm with Zinef funders, International Media Support, who ordered him to reimburse the personal loan advanced to him from Zinef funds administered by the Media Monitoring Project Zimbabwe.
Mangwende insisted the transaction was above board as it had been approved by the Zinef account holder. He has reportedly repaid the loan.
