Controversial traditional leader, Chief Mupungu (born Happison Nxumalo) of Chipinge South is making headlines for the wrong reasons.

Barely a month after the youthful leader was in the news for selling a US$54 000 Isuzu twin cab vehicle that was allocated to him by government for US$4 000, Chief Mupungu is now accused of selling tonnes of rice that was meant for his less privileged subjects.

A source privy to this development revealed that instead of facilitating the distribution of the grain to poor people, he sold it to some civil servants in Chipinge South.

“Chief Mupungu is now at war with people in his territory. He was manhandled last week during a rain-making ceremony as people were angry at him for various reasons but the main issue was that he sold rice that was meant for the people affected by drought in his land,” said one source.

“It is our understanding that each chief was allocated five tonnes of rice under a Presidential programme but Chief Mupungu took the grain for himself and started selling it to civil servants in the area.

“We only heard that the chief was selling the rice for R300 for a 50kg bag and some of the bags that were delivered at Garahwa business centre for sale,” said a source.

Efforts to get a comment from Chief Mupungu by the time of going to print proved futile as his phone could not be reached on voice call.

He had also not responded to questions sent to him via SMS.

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