A BITTER dispute has erupted between two families claiming authority over the control of funeral contributions and arrangements for the late businessman and industrialist Mutumwa Dziva Mawere, who died in Sandton, Johannesburg last Thursday.
He was 66.
The fallout centres on who has the mandate to receive and manage funeral contributions, following the circulation of competing social media messages, including a memorial poster naming contact persons and providing banking and mobile money transfer details — a move one side of the family has condemned as suspicious and unauthorised.
Speaking on behalf of one faction, Alex Mawere, the designated spokesperson for the immediate Mawere family, said the family was alarmed by what he described as deeply questionable conduct occurring while close relatives were still mourning and coordinating travel arrangements.
“While we are still grappling with the demise of our beloved family member, we have sadly noted social media messages circulating to the effect that we are seeking funeral contributions,” Alex said.
“We feel that such level of disrespect, especially during a moment like this, is not only inhuman but defies the very basic tenets of ubuntu.
“We hereby categorically state that as a family, we have not deliberated on the need to fundraise considering the stature of the man we are mourning today.
“While there is nothing innately sinister about seeking contributions when death strikes, there is everything wrong when distant people capitalise on the death of our family member to cash in on unsuspecting members of the public.”
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Alex said the family had noted messages directing mourners to make payments to the electronic wallet of one Shau Mudekunye via the Paystack platform, as well as to Dr R G Machiri’s Investec Bank Limited account, actions he said were taken without the family’s knowledge.
“These individuals are acting on their own accord without the knowledge of the family members,” he said.
“The glaring exclusion of any Mawere family member on the messages making reference to Shau Mudekunye and Dr R G Machiri on sensitive family matters of this nature is not only strange, but disturbing.”
Alex stressed that burial arrangements—and by extension funeral-related finances—were a collective family responsibility and could not be decided unilaterally.
The other family group, however, had issued a memorial poster and payment details last Thursday, announcing that mourners were gathering at Number 62 Cambridge Road, Bryanston in Sandton.
In the poster, the group stated: “As a family we are humbled by the support and grace that has been shown as we understand we share him with many people who loved and respected him. Thank you for keeping Mutumwa and his family in your prayers as we all go through this difficult time.”
According to WhatsApp communication gleaned by this publication, the same group provided banking and mobile money transfer details for what were described as funeral contributions, a development that has further deepened the rift between the two sides.
The dispute now threatens to overshadow the legacy of Mutumwa Mawere, a towering figure in business whose life and work drew admiration across Africa and beyond.
Since his passing, tributes have poured in from business leaders, politicians and ordinary citizens alike, even as uncertainty persists over who legitimately controls funeral contributions made in his name.
