Robson Sharuko

The wedding was attended by Walter Magaya who gave the couple a present of US$2 000 while the then ZIFA president Philip Chiyangwa pledged a housing stand in Borrowdale for the couple. CAPS United president Farai Jere and his wife Ashley also graced the occasion. Zimpapers, who were represented at the wedding by Victoria Ruzvidzo bought the couple a deep freezer.

Sharuko’s long-time friend, who was the best man together with his wife, Eddie Nyatanga, gave the couple a holiday voucher to Victoria Falls during the festive season while football agent Kudzi Shaba also presented them with a package to the Sun City resort and R15 000 spending money.

Former Daily News Editor Stanley Gama and Harare business executive Spencer Manguwa who gave presents of $1 000 each, Zimpapers colleagues Larry Moyo and Collin Matiza, Gibson Mahachi who manages the affairs of a host of players and coaches were also in attendance.^[1]

Children

Sharuko's daughter Mimi died in July 2016.^[2][3]

Education

Robson Sharuko graduated from the Journalism School at the Harare Polytechnic.^[4]

Career

Sharuko is known for his column in The Herald titled Sharuko On Saturday. He is the first journalist to be handed the role of Senior Sports Editor in The Herald's history. Sharuko celebrated 25 years of service at The Herald on 2 November 2017.

He joined the newspaper on November 1, 1992, after graduating from the Journalism School at the Harare Polytechnic where he was one of the top five students picked by Zimbabwe Newspapers for recruitment into the organisation at the completion of their studies. Sharuko chose to work at the newspaper’s Sports Desk and, after winning a number of awards, including the Sports Journalist of the Year, was appointed Sports Editor at the young age of 29.

He was then promoted to Senior Sports Editor and despite generating a lot of interest from a number of newspaper organisations who have tried to lure him, including South Africa’s City Press who offered him the job to lead their sports section in 2007, he remained loyal to Zimbabwe Newspapers.^[4]

In December 2021, Robson Sharuko became the editor of H-Metro. Before his appointment as H-Metro editor, Sharuko worked for 29 years and one month on the Herald sports desk and 21 years as the was the publication's Senior Sports Editor. Sharuko took over from Larry Moyo after a 12-year reign.^[5]

Sharuko co-presented the programme GamePlan together with Charles Mabika.^[3]

Life Ban For Alleged Role In Asiagate

Robson Sharuko was banned for life by the Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa) for his role in the Asiagate match-fixing scandal.

Sharuko and fellow journalist turned Monomutapa United Football Club football administrator Hope Chizuzu were banned for life for allegedly taking part in a match-fixing scam that saw Zimbabwe’s national football team lose matches in Asia.

Reacting to the life ban by Zifa, Sharuko said his conscience was clean. He wrote:

"“I know they all want me to go to considerable lengths to say my side of the story, to answer some of the questions that are haunting their minds, to shed some light on the darkness that filtered through their world, to give a meaning to all this.

They are not walking alone, because that’s the same story with my folks back home in Chakari, but as much as I would like to talk about it, say something about it, I’m sorry that I can’t do it now because my superiors here feel the time isn’t right to do that.

The lawyers, too, feel it’s premature to do that and, during such sensitive times, only a fool will not take the recommendations of his legal counsel and, as much as I know that there will be many disappointed people today that I can’t discuss that ‘ban’ slapped on me, all I can do is to beg for your understanding.

It has never happened before in this world, you know, a journalist being banned from football for life in this world by his national association, and so when you break virgin territory, as we have done in this case, it’s important to take every step with caution.

There is a danger that in anger you end up losing your focus and by opening your mouth, to let loose, you end up making a lot of monumental blunders that are not necessary at this sensitive period of this case which gave Chakari its own version of Black Friday.

I have never masqueraded as the next Pope, which means I have a lot of flaws as a human being, but those who know me closely know that I’m just a simple guy from Chakari, who loves his Manchester United and tries to work hard for my little family, who look to me as daddy and not as a Senior Sports Editor.

Time, as it usually does, is the best judge and I hope my good people of Chakari, when the clock that keeps time on my service on this company reaches the 20th year landmark on Thursday, will have cause to celebrate.

Not because I have been here and done that but because a light would have shone through the darkness that enveloped their world on Black Friday and, bit by bit, they will be getting more answers to the questions that have been weighing down on their conscience this week."

^[6]

Alleged Role In Match-fixing

Luke Masomere, who was invited to take charge of a makeshift national team on a trip to Vietnam in November 2007, said Sharuko “would show excitement” whenever in the presence of the betting syndicate honcho, Wilson Raj Perumal, who was jailed in Finland.

Masomere revealed Sharuko's alleged role in the match-fixing saying:

"We used to do our discussions [team planning] in Robson’s room. We discussed about these trips and how rich paying they were. They divulged to me that they had bought cars and built, to completion, their houses [from past payments]."

Masomere further added that he had been told by the then ZIFA CEO Henrietta Rushwaya not to pick a team or assistant coaches but just turn up at the airport. Masomere said he knew that meant all the players and officials in the travelling party “knew exactly what was happening”.

Once in Vietnam, he said, "Robson and [Godfrey] Japajapa (head of delegation), masqueraded as coaches. Therefore, they were my assistants.”

Zimbabwe lost 3-2 to Finland after having taken a 2-0 lead at the break; lost 2-0 to Vietnam and drew 1-1 with Uzbekistan. The results were pre-determined.^[6]

In response to Masomere's claims, Sharuko wrote an article saying he did not own a house in 2007 let alone a stand, anywhere in Zimbabwe and he stayed at rented premises in Chitungwiza owned by Lucky Gundani at Number 15242 in New Zengeza 4.

He added that the Nissan double cab, 2.4i petrol he used to drive was a Zimpapers’ car, given to him as his facility vehicle two years earlier, and which eventually became his, through the company’s motor vehicle scheme, in 2009. Sharuko said he covered FOUR games at the Merdeka Cup, THREE games at the Agribank Cup in Vietnam, in 2007, and ONE game in Oman in 2008 yet ZIFA still went on and gave him trips to China, Jordan, Bahrain, Yemen and all the other countries that he never went to.^[2]

References