He has now taken a leave of absence after the video went viral.
The video, shows Mutandagayi chasing his wife and striking her in the face. After Mutandagayi’s wife falls to the ground, the focus of the video changes and does not show what happened next. The footage is reported to have been taken by Mutandagayi’s 16-year-old daughter.
Following outrage at the footage, the financial services provider released a statement saying that Mutandagayi had taken a leave of absence from his duties. ZB Financial Holdings went on to say that the board of the financial services group is currently considering the “appropriate action” to take against its GCEO following the disturbing footage.
The statement released by ZB Financial Holdings in its entirety below;
“The board of directors of ZB Financial Holdings Limited has taken note of the social media communication relating to the Group Chief Executive Officer Mr. R. Mutandagayi which was published on the evening of 7 March 2021,” the banks said in a statement addressed to its customers.
“The matter in question is before the courts. In the meantime, Mr R. Mutandagayi has taken leave of absence from his duties while the board of directors of the group considers appropriate action on the matter.”
“Stakeholders will be advised of any new developments as they arise.”
However, Mutangadayi is disputing the events which appeared on the video footage insisting that he was defending himself. He claims that he was forced to defend himself after “three days of assault” from his wife.
He also questioned the timing of the damning video saying that the incident occurred two months ago. The business executive claimed that the video had been altered to work against him as it did not show the other events which transpired before and after he assaulted his wife.
“The unfortunate circumstances surrounding the incident happened on 2 January 2021 after three consecutive days of severe assault and harassment on my person. It is surprising that only two months later is when such a video is issued,” said Mutandagayi.
He added: “The bona fides of such action is questionable. Further, it is regrettable that the video only shows a certain portion of the incident obviously meant to sell a certain narrative. Since the matter is currently pending before the courts, I shall let the law take its course.”
