The Board of Combined Harare Residents’ Association (CHRA) has expelled Executive Director Mfundo Mlilo for misappropriation of funds amounting to USD $1.5 million and failing to account for his continued stay at the plush Holiday Inn hotel for several months in 2018, at a time when CHRA was owing workers who were last paid their salaries in November 2018.

“ Mlilo was squandering CHRA funds on luxuries. A huge chunk of funds was illegally channelled towards campaigns for his girlfriend Joanna Mamombe (Harare West legislator), during the 2018 elections”, said one insider privy to the developments.

Mlilo is also accused of using CHRA funds to shower Mamombe with gifts, as well as booking the hotel at CHRA’s expense.

Another insider said that, “ Mlilo embezzled more funds from CHRA than the stated $1.5 million. He used most of the looted funds to start a honey-sucking company (name supplied)”.

“With regards to Mamombe, he was trying to impress her to ward off competition from powerful politicians like Komichi (Morgan) and Chikombo (Wellington)”,said the insider.

Several Civil Society leaders in Zimbabwe are known to maximise on the availability of “free funds” from donors, especially during election years to amass personal wealth from unsuspecting donors.

The CHRA saga comes barely a year after the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) had withdrawn funding for several Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Zimbabwe after an audit unearthed massive embezzlement of funds at ERC, ZESN, CSU and Zimrights.

A similar saga also rocked Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) in 2014 after an adverse audit report had implicated the then Director, McDonald Lewanika in the misuse of the organization’s funds, among other issues.

-Online