Confusion surrounds Mugabe's patronage

Robert Mugabe: is he or isn't he? © Getty Images

There is growing confusion inside Zimbabwe over reports that Robert Mugabe has been removed as the official patron of the country's cricket board.

Mugabe has been patron for a number of years, and while he plays no active role in Zimbabwe Cricket, his association with the board has been used by opponents as an indication of his government's influence over the game.

Last month, Brigadier Gibson Mashingaidze, who is the head of the Sports & Recreation Commission (SRC), the body that intervened to break up the in-fighting inside Zimbabwe cricket in January 2006, told a group of journalists in Kwekwe that Mugabe was no longer patron.

In the course of some stinging criticism of Peter Chingoka, the ZC chairman, Mashingaidze said: "We battled [against the sports ministry] to remove his excellency from the patronancy of Zimbabwe Cricket." He said much the same thing about Mugabe's wife, Grace, who is/was a patron of the country's tennis association, where Chingoka's brother Paul has also been the subject of much controversy and in 2005 was suspended from all tennis-related activities. The parallels do not end there. In 2006 he was cleared after an independent audit requested by the SRC.

One source close to Mashingaidze said that the reason for Mugabe's withdrawal was that he feared that his image was being tarnished by the rows blighting the game. He added: "Mashingaidze is known to be a bit sensational and on the loose cannon side, and his statement cannot be taken as official."

The board refuses to have any dealings with Cricinfo, so it is unwilling to clear the issue up. Stakeholders reacted with suspicion and doubt when told, with one senior administrator saying: "It's interesting as I am sure nobody would be brave or stupid enough to carry out such an act."