War over Meikles continues, as company board accuses John Moxon of being a bully

John Moxon agreed to sell Meikles’ 50% shareholding in the Victoria Falls Hotel business without board approval and tries to bully board members to rubber-stamp his decisions, it has been alleged.

This is according to the four Meikles directors who Moxon is trying to get rid of.

In October, Meikles announced that it had fired CEO Malcom Mycroft, replacing him with John Moxon’s son, Matthew.

Moxon says this was done behind his back, and has called a meeting in December to remove all four directors on the board Rugare Chidembo, Stewart Cranswick, Simon Hammond and James Mushore.

Now the four directors – alongside Matthew – have shot back, accusing Moxon of trying to sell off Meikles’ 50% stake in the Vic Falls Hotel business and of trying to bully the board.

They say he has a hangover from when he was Executive Chairman, and still wants to call the shots on executive decisions.

Meikles, they say, needs an independent chairman.

Alwardy, the Dubai investor that bought Meikles Hotel in 2019 for US$20 million, offered a similar amount to buy Meikles’ interest in the Vic Falls Hotel.

Meikles co-runs the hotel with African Sun. It is alleged Moxon accepted that offer, without asking the board or African Sun.

The directors say Mycroft signed the MoU with Albwardy for the deal. When questioned, Mycroft said he was accountable only to Moxon.

Says the board: “(Mycroft’s) response was condescending to say the least. It became clear to the board that Mycroft had no intention to be accountable to the board.

“In his own words, he was answerable to the shareholder who, in his view, is John Moxon.”

The board are wary of Moxon’s motives, saying his company, the 48% majority shareholder Meikles Consolidated, owes Meikles US$11.7million.

The money is due for repayment in June next year.

“He expects the board to rubber-stamp whatever he has already decided,” the directors say.

“We, as directors of Meikles Limited, have refused to do so. John Moxon conflates shareholders’ issues and board issues. He fuses them in himself. He is the board and the owner.”

They say he still considers himself executive chairman. “John Moxon has failed to transition from being Executive Chairman of Meikles Limited (which he was for a long time) to being non-executive chairman and continues to make executive decisions and usurping the responsibility of the board.”

The directors say Meikles needs an independent chairperson. “This is particularly so, given John Moxon’s inclination towards unilateralism as indicated by him accepting an offer to buy a major asset of Meikles Limited without seeking board approval.”

They say “left to his own devices, John Moxon will unilaterally accept offers to purchase majority assets of the company without going through due process”.

Meikles shares were recently suspended on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) to address corporate governance concerns.

This happened at the time shareholders and board members are fighting over management of the company.

Meikles runs Pick n Pay Zimbabwe and holds 50% of Victoria Falls Hotel, a stake which is reportedly up for sale.

NewZwire/ Zwnews