Prince Harry 'upset' and 'wounded' over Sentebale charity scandal, reveals friend
Harry set up the charity in 2006Prince Harry has been left “wounded” and “upset” over the current row surrounding his charity Sentebale, a friend has claimed.
Last week, the Duke of Sussex, 40, and his co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho announced they had “resigned from our roles as patrons of the organisation until further notice”.
The chair of the organisation, Sophie Chandauka, has since lashed out at the royal, accusing him of “bullying”.
Prince Harry embroiled in Sentebale charity row
Last week, Harry stepped down from his charity in a heartbreaking statement.
The duke set up the charity alongside Prince Seeiso of Lesotho back in 2006. The aim of the charity is to help young people and children come to terms with their HIV or AIDS diagnosis. The charity provides a safe environment for them to address their mental health. It also provides them with the necessary tools to help.
After close to 20 years working for the charity he co-founded, Harry stepped down. This was due to an ongoing row with the organisation’s chair, Sophie Chandauka. No details have been confirmed about the row.
However, according to a report in The Times, it arose over a decision about fundraising. In a statement, Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso said it is “devastating that the relationship between the charity’s trustees and the chair of the board broke down beyond repair, creating an untenable situation”.
Meanwhile, Chandauka has since gone on to slam the duke, accusing him of “bullying”. She said in a statement: “Beneath all the victim narrative and fiction that has been syndicated to press is the story of a woman who dared to blow the whistle about issues of poor governance, weak executive management, abuse of power, bullying, harassment, misogyny, misogynoir – and the cover-up that ensued.”
She also accused Harry of trying to get the charity to release a statement in defence of Meghan when she faced backlash for her behaviour at a polo event last year.
Prince Harry ‘wounded’ and ‘upset’ over charity row
Now, a friend of Prince Harry’s, Alex Rayner, who attended Eton with the duke and went to the North Pole with him some years ago, has spoken out. He has claimed that his pal is “upset” by the debacle.
Speaking to the MailOnline, Alex claims he spoke to the duke over the weekend.
“H is very happy for me to speak for him about how he feels about this awful situation. He is just beyond heartbroken and flabbergasted that the charity he founded as a teenager has been taken hostage by the chair,” Alex said.
“It feels tantamount to a hostile takeover. He is so upset and hurt and wounded about the things that are being said about him,” he added.
“I think it’s too early to tell whether he will just walk away now or whether he might try and get it back. The way he feels is as if he has had one of his fingers cut off.”
Royal Insider has contacted Harry’s reps for comment.
Prince Harry accused of asking charity chair to ‘defend’ Meghan
Last year, at a polo event organised by the charity, Meghan faced criticism thanks to an awkward moment during a photo op.
Meghan reportedly asked the charity chair, Sophie, to move out of the way so she could stand next to her husband. This then led to Sophie having to duck under the trophy Harry was carrying and move to a new position.
The awkward moment, caught on camera, saw Meghan come under fire for it.
He is just beyond heartbroken and flabbergasted that the charity he founded as a teenager has been taken hostage by the chair.
Sophie spoke to Sky News over the weekend about the incident. “We would have been really excited had we known ahead of time [Meghan was coming], but we didn’t,” she said.
“And so the choreography went badly on stage because we had too many people on stage. The international press captured this, and there was a lot of talk about the duchess and the choreography on stage and whether she should have been there and her treatment of me,” she then continued.
“Prince Harry asked me to issue some sort of a statement in support of the duchess, and I said I wouldn’t.
“Not because I didn’t care about the duchess, but because I knew what would happen if I did so, number one. And number two, because we cannot be an extension of the Sussexes.”
Read more: Prince Harry’s ‘dig’ at Prince William and Kate Middleton during final royal engagement
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