ZIMURA hits discordant note as fraud claims surface Phillip Chipfumbu

Muchaneta Chimuka-Arts Correspondent

SOME board members of the Zimbabwe Music Rights Association (ZIMURA) have expressed their displeasure over the allegedly mishandling of the association’s  funds, which has resulted in them calling for a media conference to pour their hearts out.

ZIMURA’s top executive members have since been reported to the police for theft and abuse of funds. 

National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed this by saying: “Yes, this issue has been reported to the police and we will give an official report on Tuesday (today).” 

Director of the ZIMURA board Phillip Chipfumbu and board members Fred Farai Nyakudanga and Kirian Manyika said those they reported to the police were board chairperson Albert Nyathi, executive director Polisile Ncube-Chimhini, First Farai and Henry Makombe.

“I have been in this organisation for the past eight years, but things are not well because the association is being run more like a family business,” said Chipfumbu. “Sometime in March this team went to Bulawayo to purchase a stand and we as board members were never consulted and I raised eye-brows. 

“They are just milking our royalties and some of the deserving artistes are not benefiting at all. Only the prominent members who have made names in the arts industry are benefiting, which is not fair.” 

Chipfumbu said the Government and other private organisations should intervene and address the plight of living and late music legends, whose funds were being allegedly abused by the said parties. 

“The association is just squandering the proceeds that it collects from bars, hotels, brothels, public transport etc,” he said. “They have a bank card that they use to purchase beer whenever they please, while orphans and widows of the late legends are suffering, so do the living legends.

“It is not fair and that is the reason why we managed to call for this presser such that the media can be our mouth-piece.” 

Contacted for comment, Albert Nyathi said the allegations did not hold substance. 

“The guy who was chairing the presser, Freddy Nyakudanga, is a former member of ZIMURA who was removed for various misdemeanour’s,” he said. “So, he was chairing as who? He lost in the last elections in May last year and has been bitter ever since, attacking me at every given opportunity in various media platforms.”  

Nyathi said Nyakudanga was criticising him before the annual general meeting in May last year, but still lost the election. 

“Boniface Manyonganise was one of the speakers at the presser,” he said. “This is singer Sharon Manyonganise’s father. He is former Chitungwiza councillor who was involved in scandals related to stands. 

“He was once a board member of ZIMURA for one term after his campaign involved promising members residential stands. When he promised members stands in the next election, people read through his tricks and he lost the vote.” Nyathi said among those who attended the press conference was Shem Chireka, whom he said was suspended from ZIMURA for various reasons. 

“All those accusations are a lie, as these guys can’t be patient enough to take over the organisation as this is my last term,” he said. “They know what they are doing. They want to incite members so that members believe them. 

“Actually I had hoped to step down from ZIMURA leadership in the last election, but a lot of members persuaded me to stay on for at least one more term to finish the project I had started, building a Music and Culture Centre in Bulawayo and acquiring land in Harare to do the same.” Chimhini said fights within ZIMURA started sometime in March this year when they purchased the association’s stand in Bulawayo. 

“We were supposed to meet our prospective donor and only the executive members went, that’s why Chipfumbu is fighting us,” he said. “It was not possible for board members to be there as a cost cutting measure, hence we gave them feedback on what transpired in Bulawayo since it’s the project for the association, but he remained a bitter man.” 

ZIMURA director of Information and publicity, Alexio Gwenzi, said: “It is the burden of the accuser to prove beyond reasonable doubt that funds are being abused. Our financial statements are religiously audited every year and the statements have also been annually sent to CISAC, the international governing body for CMOs as well as the Companies and Intellectual Property of Zimbabwe among other relevant stakeholders.” 

He said the audited financial statements were available on the ZIMURA Website. 

“It should also be noted that ZIMURA management is allowed to utilise a maximum of 30 percent of the total revenue collected for purposes of running the organisation.” 

Those activities include marketing, public relations and publicity activities, administration, staff salaries and workshops. 

Gwenzi said Ncube-Chimhini ran ZIMURA with distinction and was not a ghost worker.

“She joined the organisation in 1996 as a secretary and was promoted to assistant general manager in January 2001 then was promoted to general manager in January 2002 when Gill Atkinson left,” he said. 

“She was duly appointed by the board as the chief executive officer using the title of general manager in January 2002. She was promoted to executive director on 20 January 2010 and has a valid contract of employment.” 

On allegations that Nyathi had overstayed as ZIMURA board chair, Gwenzi said all was in order and they followed the prescribed laws.

Gwenzi further said allegations that ZIMURA had been turned into political party were baseless. “Royalties are paid for use of musical works not for the mere production of the works,” he said. “However, there is an issue we are grappling with to do with musicians whose music is being played in bars and night clubs, but not on radio. 

“The model we are using at the moment is that we use the log sheets from radio stations to distribute, this is the standard world over, that is how other CMOs that are signatories to the Berne convention operate. 

“ZIMURA keeps the log sheets for at least three years so that if there is anyone willing to check how their works were used or not used they can do so. 

“Most of our artistes don’t invest in quality music, they don’t take music like any other business that has stiff competition for customers. Some don’t even understand which radio stations play their songs. 

“As Zimura, we have an office that is open every week day from 8am to 4:30pm, we also have a Whatsapp line and social media platforms created for ease of interaction with our members. We have done our best and continue to do so in terms of making sure information reaches our members. 

“If anyone has a problem or if there are any grey areas anyone, is free to walk into our offices and we will be happy to explain anything they might have questions on. They can also use our social media platforms to contact us. No one has been duped and again these accusers are ill-informed.” 

Gwenzi said if there was any wrong-doing on the part of the officials, the law should take its course. 

“In the same vein, if anyone intentionally defames another without tangible evidence that can been produced in the courts of law, they will be sued, the law will take its course,” he said.

 “We will not be side-tracked with side shows or any form of a circus, our mandate is to make sure that any copyright holder whose work is being used is paid their dues.”

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