United Family International Church (UFIC) founder Prophet Emmanuel Makandiwa has said that he will accept controversial businessman Wicknell Chivayo’s gift after previously declining it, insisting his initial refusal was based on principle rather than public criticism surrounding the prominent tenderpreneur.
Speaking to congregants during a church service over the weekend, Makandiwa said the gift was still available and that he expected Chivayo to deliver it.
“Leaving this place we are already expecting that the gentleman will bring our gift. The gifts are there. I’m the one who had not collected. We will receive them, pray for you and bless you,” Makandiwa told congregants.
He said his earlier decision not to collect the gift was not influenced by criticism directed at Chivayo over his donations but it was just a principle.
“You have to be a seer for you to be able to give me. Not just a giver. But the person is humiliated, castigated as if he is asking me. No, he wants to give,” he said.
Makandiwa added that he had communicated his position directly to Chivayo.
“I had actually communicated with him at the time. I said: ‘I had received the gift but I’m not going to take it because I have seen how many people you have been giving.'”
His remarks mark a shift from last month, when Chivayo revealed that Makandiwa and his wife, Ruth, had declined an undisclosed gift, opting instead to offer prayers on his behalf.
At the time, Chivayo said the couple had invited him to their home to pray for him rather than accept the donation.
“In retrospect, a few have declined donations I offered them, and there were never any hard feelings whatsoever,” Chivayo wrote on social media.
“Known examples are Mrs Guti from ZAOGA, President of ZIFA (Nqobile) Magwizi and even Prophet Makandiwa and his wife, who instead gratuitously offered to invite me to his house to pray for me to have more blessings in order to bless others.”
Several other religious leaders, including Prophet Uebert Angel and his wife Beverly, Bishop Nehemiah Mutendi, Pastor Ian Ndlovu, Prophet Walter Magaya, Talent Madungwe and Trymore Muparinga, accepted vehicles and cash gifts from Chivayo.
Guti said she rejected an offer of a luxury vehicle and cash, citing the principles upheld by her late husband, Archbishop Ezekiel Guti, while Magwizi said accepting the vehicles would have breached football governance and conflict-of-interest standards due to Chivayo’s links to clubs under ZIFA’s jurisdiction.
Chivayo has maintained that his donations are voluntary acts of philanthropy and has said those who decline them are free to do so without any ill feeling.
Popularly known as Sir Wicknell, Chivayo rose to prominence after his company Intratrek Zimbabwe (Private) Limited secured a multimillion-dollar government contract to build the Gwanda Solar Project in 2015, a deal that later became the subject of lengthy legal proceedings.
He faced fraud and money laundering charges over the project but was ultimately acquitted in 2024. He has also been linked to several other high-profile government contracts allegedly awarded without proper tender procedures.
Chivayo, a vocal supporter of President Emmerson Mnangagwa and ZANU-PF, has attracted widespread attention for lavish gifts and cash donations to musicians, journalists, sports organisations and state security services.
His career has been marked by both controversy and close scrutiny over his business dealings and political connections.
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