You’ll be missed Mr Chaps

Happiness Zengeni and Golden Sibanda

‘Dear Madam

Coming from you and judging from the other commentaries on the various company performances, we consider your commentary to be very positive.I did say that we were going to pay a dividend. The dividend policy is 2,5 times cover, however, we were not going to follow the policy due to other cash commitments. There was a growth of 20 percent on the dividend declared.

Sustainability of earnings in 2015, 2016 and 2017 — We said we already have $55m less $9m in the bag. Sure we do not have a replacement project, but we are working on it.

The issue of share price madam — you were hitting below the belt. You are correct to say that the share price declined by 38 percent in 2014. How did the Industrial Index perform? Was this performance out of sync with the other companies? You also have to throw in the fact this share was valued at 0,25c in 2009. Over the period, we think our shareholders have had a good deal. It would have been fairer in our view if you compared our performance with that of our compatriots.

Thanks for the comments — we will address some of the concerns raised.

Simon B. Chapereka’

The above correspondence done in 2015 to Happiness Zengeni sums up the kind of chief executive that Simon Chapereka was. He was one of the most engaging chief executives on the stock exchange. He was one person who always wanted to prove how Fidelity had so much untapped value and would make time for any analyst with interest in the company. There were many correspondences like this from Mr Chapereka. He had an open door policy with both analysts and shareholders.

This is why hundreds of people from across the corporate and social divide thronged Glen Forest Cemetery in Harare to pay their last respects to the Fidelity Life managing director yesterday.

Other than multitudes of people comprising his family, relatives and friends were industry luminaries, practitioners in the insurance business and fellow chief executives or directors from various corporates. He had the befitting send-off for an accomplished corporate leader; to those in the insurance or corporate world in general, because of his great work in transforming and growing Fidelity Life to what it is today.

In a true demonstration of the good man he was; loved and respected by workmates, industry executives and practitioners, family and friends, Mr Chapereka was laid to rest in song (gospel) and energetic dance. The turnout, arguably, spoke of his stature and popularity.

Among the many high profile executives who braved the hot weather to grace his burial yesterday were Insurance and Pension Commission head of prudential supervision; Pupurai Togarepi, fellow parent firm, Zimre, subsidiary NicozDiamond’s managing director Grace Muradzikwa and former Zimre Holdings workmate Solomon Tembo. Zimbabwe Stock Exchange chief executive Alban Chirume also made the list of executives and employees from listed and unlisted firms who paid their last respects to the man who took over a Fidelity Life that had just been unbundled and shortly after, listed its shares on the ZSE.

By the time he joined Fidelity Life, Mr Chapereka already had loads of corporate experience under his belt, having started his career in 1985, as a trainee manager at Apex Corporation and then working as an accountant for many firms before eventually joining the Zimre family.

Mr Chapereka, holder of BBS (Hons) ACMA, RPA, CA(Z), joined the insurance industry in 2000, as general manager Fidelity Life’s general manager finance and admin. In 2001 he became acting managing director of Fidelity Life Asset Management, moving to parent firm, Zimre Holdings in 2002 to take up the post of chief finance officer.

Under his watch, Fidelity Life became the 78th entity to list on the ZSE, with the company’s initial public offering of 698 million shares oversubscribed over two weeks and opening its 13th branch in Kadoma in 2003. Ever since, it has grown and opened branches across Zimbabwe.

The late Fidelity boss’ title later changed to group managing director, as the insurance company grew under his stewardship, having also absorbed companies such as Vanguard Malawi and Cavmont in Zambia. With a solid, enterprising and capable human resources, Mr Chapereka declared in his early days at the helm of the life assurance company, that his sights were firmly set on making the company leader in its business.

“We have the necessary human resources to bring financial business into reality. Think insurance policies, investment schemes, pension schemes, you name them, Fidelity intends to be the leader in their provision,” media quoted him as saying, only months after joining Fidelity.

By 2011, Mr Chapereka had built Fidelity Life into a top tier insurer. In fact, the company was ranked in the top six along with NicozDiamond, the biggest short-term insurer, Eagle and Cell Insurance in just over half a decade of reign.

Its shares were among best performers on ZSE in 2011 — thanks to Mr Chapereka’s astute leadership, creativity, innovation and results oriented management — growing by over 491 percent between January and November of that particular year.

Mr Chapereka said the company had leveraged on its balance sheet to fund expansion both within the domestic market, across the region and Africa. Its balance sheet, by 2011, had grown from a mere $6 million at dollarisation to over $26 million by December of that year.

Mr Chapereka, born in 1962 and 54 years old at the time of his death, was married to Ruth and the couple were blessed with three children.