The Chairperson of an African Charity Co-Founded by Prince Harry Accused the Royal of Bullying
Prince Harry’s in the hot seat again, and this time it’s personal. On Sunday, Sophie Chandauka, the chair of Sentebale—a charity he co-founded back in 2006 to support HIV/AIDS-affected kids in southern Africa—came out swinging, accusing him of running a full-on bullying and harassment campaign to boot her out. This bombshell dropped just days after Harry’s sudden exit from the organization, and it’s got everyone talking.
Chandauka didn’t hold back during her Sky News tell-all. She dished on how Harry’s big Netflix deal threw a wrench into a planned fundraiser and how an awkward run-in with Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, turned into a flashpoint. Harry officially stepped down as Sentebale’s patron on Tuesday, pointing to a messy fallout between the board and Chandauka as his reason for bailing.
He and co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho dropped a joint statement, saying they walked away “with heavy hearts” alongside five trustees who also quit over a clash with Chandauka. She’d refused to budge when they pushed her to resign, reportedly over a shift in the charity’s mission from aiding AIDS-hit youth to tackling broader issues like youth health, wealth, and climate resilience in southern Africa. “It’s heartbreaking that the trustees and the chair hit a dead end,” the princes said. “We’re stunned we’re in this spot, but we owe it to Sentebale’s beneficiaries to flag this mess with the Charity Commission.”
Chandauka’s fighting back hard—she’s sued Sentebale to keep her gig and says she’s reported the trustees to the U.K.’s Charity Commission while filing court papers to block her ousting. She’s hinted at shady stuff going down at the charity, throwing around words like “abuse of power,” “bullying,” “harassment,” “misogyny,” and “misogynoir”—a term for racism and sexism aimed at Black women—without naming names or spilling specifics.
On Sky, she called Harry’s resignation a blindsiding gut punch and “harassment and bullying on steroids.” She even claimed he meddled with her whistleblower complaint, snarling, “It’s a cover-up, and the prince is in on it.” She didn’t stop there—Chandauka said donors started bailing after Harry and Meghan ditched royal life in 2020 and set up shop in California, tanking Sentebale’s cash flow. To her, the real poison is “the toxicity of its lead patron’s brand,” as she told the *Financial Times*.
Then there’s the Miami polo fundraiser fiasco from last year. Chandauka said it nearly imploded when Harry insisted on dragging along a Netflix crew filming his sports series. The venue jacked up costs since it turned commercial, forcing a last-minute scramble for a new host—which Harry pulled off via his Rolodex. But the real kicker? Meghan’s surprise cameo at the event. Chandauka described a cringe-worthy trophy moment caught on video: she tried posing next to Harry, who had Meghan glued to his side, only for the Duchess to nudge her away. Chandauka had to duck under the trophy to squeeze into the shot. “The global press ate it up—everyone was buzzing about Meghan, the stage drama, and how she treated me,” she said.
She also shot down Harry’s push for a pro-Meghan statement, snapping, “We’re not here to prop up the Sussexes.” Sky News reached out to Harry and Meghan for a response, but they stayed mum, and an AP email to their team got no reply.
This whole saga’s peeling back the curtain on a royal mess—Harry’s exit, Chandauka’s accusations, and a charity caught in the crossfire. It’s a wild ride, and the fallout’s just beginning.
