There looks to be more drama at Telecel Zimbabwe (Private) Limited and as long as these kind of dramas keeps hanging on this company’s neck, may irrevocably lead to its final demise. Truthfully assessing, these kind of squabbles are negatively impacting the company’s overall performance in the telecoms sector. Telecel Zimbabwe company chairman James Makamba has furtively sought to eject one of his Empowerment Corporation (EC) partners and board member Gerald Mlotshwa.
To those who don’t know Gerald Mlotshwa. He is married to Mnangagwa’s daughter Farai Victoria, and was recently introduced to Telecel Zimbabwe board by Makamba, after years of acting his legal partner, it is rumored Makamba could not pay for the legal fees and sold some shares as settlement.
This hardly comes as the businessman is locked in a $2,8 million lawsuit with another EC associate George Manyere over 2015-2016 monies given to him as deposit for a major stake in the empowerment vehicle and securitized by his Kestrel Corporation (Private) Limited (Kestrel) shares.
This recently follows after the Ministry of ICT under Supa Mandiwanzira nominated its top candidates for the Telecel board namely Selby Hwacha, Barbara Rwodzi and Francis Mawindi to represent their interests while the Empowerment Corporation which refused to sell to government has put up three names towards the board, which were James Makamba, Jane Mutasa and Gerald Nqobile Mlothswa.
“We refer to the letter dated 16 May 2018 addressed to you by… Makamba, in which he purports to withdraw the nomination of Mr Mlotshwa as a director of Telecel Zimbabwe Limited with immediate effect,” Mlotshwa’s lawyers Mushoriwa Pasi said in a May 18 rejoinder.
“It is our considered view that the purported withdrawal is invalid as it fails to comply with the provisions of section 175 of the Companies… which clearly outlines the procedure… for the removal of a director,” they said, adding “any other procedures outside the law were void and of no force nor effect”.
While Mlotshwa has made a strong argument that he “has not resigned from the board and was entitled to transacting the company’s business” until such a removal was legally sanctioned or sound, the machinations come as Makamba has decidedly moved to repudiate a May 2017 share purchase agreement and unilaterally seek to oust the former without an EC board meeting or resolution.
Following an acquisition of the firm’s majority shareholding by Manyere’s Ecsponent Zimbabwe (Private) Limited (Ecsponent), which the Kestrel owner acknowledges, the Titan Law senior partner, ex-Brainworks Capital founder and Walter Kambwanji were appointed to the local empowerment grouping’s board, and subsequently Telecel in August last year.
With the deal set to be completed when Makamba returned to Harare in early December – under an arrangement amply facilitated by Mlotshwa and through an extra-ordinary general meeting called by the former Zanu PF provincial chairman himself – the transaction was held up due to political infighting in president Robert Mugabe’s government at the time.
Now, it would seem the ex-Thurlows supermarket operator is bent on taking full advantage of that lost momentum and external interference by withholding the Ecsponent share certificates, thus raising serious suspicions about his business ethic and way of doing things.
