Masvinu threatens to sue Mr Ugly organiser

Standard Style
Mutangadura’s phone was not picked on Thursday afternoon when The Standard Style sought comment from him, but Apama claims the benefactor wanted to sell a bull first to settle the remaining debt before the alleged manhandling incident.

Dethroned Mr Ugly William Masvinu is considering taking legal action against the contest’s organiser and dancer, David “Apama Styles” Machowa over outstanding prize money amounting to $400.

By Kennedy Nyavaya

Masvinu, who was recently banned for life by Machowa for alleged indiscipline and assaulting promoter Isaac Mutangadura, has won the competition three times since its inception in 2012.

In an interview with The Standard Style on Wednesday, Masvinu said he was opting for the legal route in order to get his dues from the “serial defaulters”.

“I have decided to take the legal route to see if we can get the money or not and he should tell me in front of the judge whether he will pay my dues because we are tired of calling and organising meetings as he switches off his phone or hides all the time,” said Masvinu.

The 43-year-old said the “illegal life-ban” was the least of his worries currently as he is pursuing to secure the balance after $100 was sent to him via mobile money transfer last week.

Masvinu received $500 in prize money.

“What I want right now is my money, whether they banned me or not it does not matter, they should just give me what is due to me,” he said, adding that the alleged assault on Mutangadura was a machination to evade paying.

“Apama says we beat him up, but it’s a lie because if he was beaten, he would not do what he is doing.”

Masvinu’s manager Michael Gando said they had reported the case at Ruwa Police Station and were waiting to go with the two winners for further reports.

Apama scoffed at the prospects of ending up in court over the matter, saying he had no case to answer as the claims were baseless following Masvinu’s dethroning.

“There is no case to talk about here because we went public when we banned and demoted him. The same way we did when he won and anyway, if they wanted to take a legal route, they would have done so by now,” he said.

Apama expressed disgruntlement over what he said was an attempt to soil his name by harassing the sponsor and swore that they would never invite Masvinu to the contest ever again.

“I do not want to see Masvinu ever again because he is chasing away sponsors. Saying the contest will not survive without him is not correct because this is my brand and it will continue,” Apama said.

Mutangadura’s phone was not picked on Thursday afternoon when The Standard Style sought comment from him, but Apama claims the benefactor wanted to sell a bull first to settle the remaining debt before the alleged manhandling incident.

Apama has for long been accused of failing to pay winners at contests he organises. After dethroning Masvinu, Apama said the first prize would go to first runner up Fanuel Musekiwa (61).

However, Musekiwa’s manager Brian Nyamugamu said they had not received communication from the organiser.

“In the past, things would happen the same way they are, but the end is always sour for us,” said Nyamugamu.

Meanwhile, Masvinu, who was part of five contestants this year, is a perennial entrant and winner whose name had become synonymous with the rare competition and his absence next time may affect the Mr Ugly brand.