Leadership feud explodes as HRDC factions trade accusations

Fresh turmoil has erupted inside the Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) after an ad hoc committee accused chairperson Michael Kaiyatsa of misleading the public about the status of a court battle over his leadership.

Committee chair Henderson Mhango told journalists that contrary to Kaiyatsa’s claims, the High Court never ruled on their bid to secure an injunction blocking him from continuing as HRDC chair.

Instead, Justice Howard Pemba flagged serious governance and leadership gaps and pushed the matter into mediation on 23 July 2026, giving both sides 30 days to resolve the constitutional issues.

Mhango — who also leads HRDC’s Southern Region chapter — warned that portraying the dispute as “concluded” undermines the court’s directive and risks prejudicing the mediation process before the unresolved issues return for trial.

But Kaiyatsa insisted the court declined to grant the injunction, while agreeing that both parties were ordered to address constitutional gaps through mediation.

The feud, which exploded into a legal showdown in April, centres on the committee’s challenge to Kaiyatsa’s legitimacy as HRDC leader.

Members are demanding full disclosure of donor funding, a long‑overdue annual general meeting, and fresh elections — alleging Kaiyatsa was handpicked by former chair Gift Trapence.

The committee says it only turned to the courts after failed attempts to resolve the crisis through consultations with bodies including the NGO Regulatory Authority (Ngora).