High Court settles Mugodhi church wrangle

Victor Maphosa

Herald Reporter

The High Court has ruled that Mr Aaron Munodawafa is the substantive Bishop of the Mugodhi Apostolic Faith Church, putting to an end a leadership wrangle that has threatened to tear the sect apart.

The ruling by High Court judge Justice Siyabonga Musithu means that Mr Washington Mugodhi is no longer the substantive bishop of the church.

The judge in the civil matter used the church’s constitution to make the ruling as to the substantive bishop and the vice-bishop, and declared the appointment of Mr Washington Mugodhi as a vice bishop as ultra vires the church constitution and so was null and void.

In an additional order Mr Washington Mugodhi was interdicted from holding himself as bishop of the church and all his appointments and or reassignments and actions “in his purported capacity as bishop” were declared unconstitutional and, therefore, null and void.”

In July 2017, Bishop Tadewu Mugodhi is alleged to have ordered the church’s top hierarchy to change a clause on succession in the then draft constitution to allow his son to take over after him. It is further alleged that in August 2019, Bishop Tadewu Mugodhi summoned all leaders in Budiriro, Harare, and announced that Washington had been appointed the first bishop, a move which was against the church constitution.

This did not go down well with other church members, leading to an ugly fallout.

Bishop Tadewu Mugodhi later died, reportedly due to cancer, at the age of 79.

At that time, the church allegedly had two deputies, Mr Munodawafa and Mr Tony Sigauke.

Mugodhi Apostolic Faith Church was formed in 1947 and in 1948, Bishop Elijah Mugodhi was installed as the substantive Bishop. He led the church until the time of his death in 1971.

Several leaders came and led the church until the leadership was given back to the son of founding Bishop, Mr Tadewu Mugodhi.