HARARE – Patrick Mavhura was sacked as CEO of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) on Sunday after five years at the helm, three of them in an acting capacity.
Wisdom Hombarume, currently the ZBC’s director of digital media and broadcasting technology, has been named as the acting CEO.
The government-controlled radio and television monopoly broadcaster has a new board chaired by President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s doctor, Josaya Tayi, which was announced in July by Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa. The board announced Mavhura’s exit.
Mavhura took over from Happison Muchechetere as acting CEO in 2014.
He was one of 15 people interviewed for the position on a substantive basis in 2017, coming seventh.
Mavhura was however still appointed CEO, with the ZBC board chairman at the time, Fidelis Munyoro, publicly stating that those who scored better than him had failed a “security vetting process” by the Central Intelligence Organisation.
A key test for any official seconded to a key management role in Zimbabwe’s state media is demonstrable loyalty to the government, and competence is usually a secondary consideration.
Mavhura was a hugely unpopular figure with journalists at the ZBC, who felt he had failed to prioritise news gathering through investing in new equipment and vehicles.
