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The Bulawayo executive members yesterday held an emergency meeting at their offices in Njube suburb after news filtered that new members had been roped into the council in Harare without their knowledge.
About 10 members of the council attended the meeting.
In an interview, TMPC deputy chairman Mr David Mhabhinyane Ngwenya said traditional leaders from Matabeleland region are not happy.
“We are not being treated well by the council. Members are being excluded from meetings and no information comes down to us. Most of the time we are just given licences to collect fees from members. All traditional healers are not happy about this problem,” said Mr Ngwenya.
“Now we just heard that they have elected new members without our knowledge. Maybe we should have our own regional council because if we are not being respected, that would bring division.”
Dr Charles Chiedza Maponga heads TMPC.
His deputy, Mr Ngwenya, who is also the president of the International Traditional Healers’ Association, said their operations were being impeded by the developments, as they felt they were no longer members of the council.
“Section 12 of the TLA says if a chairperson is unable to exercise duties for any reason, the vice chairman shall exercise such functions. As a vice chairman and as executive members, we should have been told about the developments than just to hear through the grapevine that some people we do not even know have been appointed to lead us.
“No one from this side is in the executive and how then can we say we are being represented? Last year none of us attended any meeting in Harare. How then do we continue working in a council that does not respect people? We want to know who called that meeting because it seems we have been technically knocked out of the council and the Minister might have been misled on that,” said Mr Ngwenya.
He said yesterday’s meeting was meant to update members about the goings on and have a possible way forward.
The Minister of Health and Child Welfare appoints the TMPC council and Mr Ngwenya was appointed in 2007.
Contacted for comment, Dr Maponga said there was no ploy to deliberately leave other members out of the council.
He said the new executive was due in July last year, but they could not hold meetings because of financial constraints.
“We last met in April last year, but we could not hold other meetings because of financial challenges. The Minister only appointed new members in December last year and those members were inaugurated on Wednesday this week.
“Those in Bulawayo should not cry foul because they have a wonderful representative, who is a successful practitioner. They need to allow him time and I can assure them that their voice will be represented. The new council will soon meet to recommend a vice chairman to the Minister, who would then appoint him,” said Dr Maponga.
He said when appointing members, the Minister looks at those who are paid up. “On how councillors were identified you can ask the Minister, he is responsible for appointing. But I can assure you there is no politics in this and members should know that our mission is to rationalise traditional medicine in the country,” said Dr Maponga.
Dr Henry Madzorera, the Minister of Health and Child Welfare, could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Online Reporter