… boasts 2030 she will still be in charge
By Brighton Chiseva
The battle for control at Zaka Rural District Council (RDC) between Chief Executive Officer David Majaura and council chairperson Fungai Maregedze is raging on with the latest development being the council chair stopping a full council meeting that was supposed to take place saying no meeting would be held without her consent.
The council chair who is currently out on bail after being arrested for abuse of office, interdicted the local authority from holding a special full council meeting to deliberate on the budget without her approval as she flexes her muscles following the relaxation of her bail conditions.
The move comes after taking a sabbatical when she was arrested though she claimed to have been mourning a relative who had passed on.
Maregedze appeared at Masvingo Magistrate’s court where she was ordered to return to court on November 19 and will no longer report to the police as had been her initial bail conditions.
Soon after the court she wrote to council through her lawyer Dereck Charamba of Ndlovu and Hwacha legal practitioners where she said she was the only one with power to convene such a meeting despite being on bail..
“We refer to the above matter and confirm that our services have been retained by our client Fungai Maregedze, the substantive Chairperson for Zaka Rural District Council. We are informed that on 4 November 2024, it came to our client’s attention of the intended conduct of a Special Council Meeting on 6 November 2024 at 1000 hours. The notice was communicated via a notice by the Chief Executive Officer. For ease of reference a copy is attached and marked ‘A’
“This correspondence is a consequence of the notice and solely purposed to highlight the ensuing fundamental breach of the Rural District Councils Act [Chapter 29:13)
“We advise that, per section 46 of the governing Act, the calling of the intended special Council meeting is the statutory prerogative of the Chairperson in the performance of her functions as envisaged in section 45 (1) (a) unless obtaining circumstances satisfy the criteria set forth in section 45 (L) (b) of the same Act.
“For purposes of completeness, the Chairperson is neither on suspension nor subject to dismissal as envisaged in section I57 of the governing Act and as such not burdened by any form of statutory restrictions in the performance of her mandate.
“Further to it, the pending criminal charges under CRB No. MSVPACC 8/74 and imposed bail conditions, neither disqualify nor incapacitate our client.
“The intended meeting is a nullity at law as the obtaining circumstances are nor as such contemplated in section 45 (1) (b) and 157 of the governing Act.
“The complained conduct, is tantamount to a deliberate and conscious disregard of the Act and scandalizes good governance and normal functioning of Zaka Rural District Council
By copy of this correspondence, we consequently put you on notice to cancel the intended meeting via a communique to invited persons by no later than 1600 hours today (5 November 2024) to allow compliance with peremptory statutory provisions in the Rural District Councils Act. Failing which we have instructions to approach the high court on an urgent basis,” reads the letter.
As if that was not enough, Maregedze took to the WhatsApp group of councilors and management where she stamped authority reminding councilors that she will be there up to 2030. In the leaked chats she said she still has power which is why she had to cancel the meeting.
“Morning councilors, the meeting was cancelled because of this, I am still there until 2030. If I wasn’t there I wouldn’t have the power to cancel this. Read the sections, I am still Chairman (sic) of Zaka RDC. Those who do not want to report to me may be excused, all what we need to do is not to discuss the meetings done in February this year which are in court but that doesn’t stop me from attending meetings,” reads her post.
She went on to warn those who do not want to work with her that she will take correct measures to deal with them and those willing were supposed to work with her.
“Councilors and management, I am stamping my authority as chair. Those who feel cannot work with me are free to do so. I am not forcing anyone but I will take action according to the rules of the land,” she said.
However, the cancellation of the meeting on the 11th hour inconvenienced some councilors who had received communication of the meeting on October 28.
Maregedze and Majaura have been at each other’s throats with their feud being alleged to emanate from Zanu PF District factional fights as the ruling party big wigs fight for control of the district.
Maregedze is wife to former deputy Minister of Finance Clemence Chiduwa who is Zaka South MP and Zaka District Zanu PF Coordinating Committee Chairperson.
Chiduwa seconded his wife to be a proportional representative councilor and allegedly went on to pay several councilors to be elected council chair to cement their control of the district allegedly after getting the District Development Coordinator (DDC) Memory Dhliwayo in their corner.
Maregedze allegedly tried to fire Majaura intending to replace him with Dhliwayo and later herself as she felt she was qualified having worked as Masvingo Provincial head at RedCross where she left and has pending fraud cases in the courts.
Investigations by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) revealed that the accused convened a number of unsanctioned meetings between February and April 2024. These meetings, attended exclusively by councilors and held without council management, had no formal agenda or records, and were outside the council’s official schedule. Despite the irregular nature of these gatherings, Maregedze authorized the payment of sitting allowances amounting to over US$6 000, all outside the council’s budget.
It is alleged that in February this year, Maregedze called for two meetings which were not part of the council’s annual schedule where US$692 and US$926 was paid to councilors, including herself, for attendance. A similar meeting was held on February 17 and she demanded allowances in violation of council procedures.
In April, Maregedze allegedly coerced the Finance Director to approve an unscheduled payment of US$4,749 for yet another unauthorized meeting.
In June 2024, she handpicked Lyonais Investments as the exclusive supplier of council fuel, disregarding the required procurement process. She allegedly authorized payment of US$1,630 for 1,000 litres of fuel without following the proper approval chain.
