Ousted Oxfam CEO lambastes charity for 'brutal' dismissal

The governance crisis at Oxfam GB has intensified after former CEO Halima Begum set out her most detailed account to date of the events leading to her dismissal, accusing the charity of “brutally” dismissing and stigmatizing her and the charity’s former board chair of making her feel “humiliatingly infantilized.” The charity hit back, saying the independent review into complaints against her had found “substantive and very serious concerns” relating to Begum’s conduct, decision-making, and leadership style. In an explosive three-page statement shared with Devex, Begum — who resigned from the charity in December amid allegations that she was bullying staff — described the staff complaints against her as “false, prejudiced and malicious comments” and said that she felt “forced” to resign from the charity in December 2025. Begum told Devex that she filed a claim for constructive dismissal and victimization with an employment tribunal on Feb. 3, 2026. The claim is understood to be against Oxfam and several current and former trustees, including former chair Charles Gurassa, acting cochairs Annie Hudson and Nana Afadzinu, and trustees Tunde Olanrewaju, Les Campbell, Andrew Hind, and Kerri O’Neill. Oxfam said that it had not yet received Begum’s claim. In her statement, Begum said she raised concerns about the conduct of Gurassa more than a month before an independent review was commissioned to look into staff complaints about the charity’s senior leadership. The statement alleged that on Sept. 21, 2025, Gurassa — who is also chair of The Guardian newspaper — “acted in a sexist manner” toward her and a junior female member of staff, which led to the then-CEO complaining about the then-chair’s conduct. A spokesman for Gurassa did not respond to a request for comment on that specific claim. According to the statement, Gurassa “took umbrage” at this, and at Begum’s annual appraisal several weeks later, he found fault with her conduct in a way she characterized as retaliatory. She told Devex that Gurassa criticized her for working at weekends on what she described as a serious safeguarding matter. The statement also alleged that at a board dinner on Oct. 8, 2025, Gurassa told Oxfam board members and other invitees that being asked to take Begum to an important work meeting was “akin to a parent being asked to take their child to work with them” — a comment Begum described as “demeaning, humiliating and … sexist.” Begum told Devex that trustees present at the dinner witnessed the remark in question. A spokesperson for Gurassa said that the allegations were “completely spurious.” His spokesperson also said: “Ms Begum withdrew from the independent review into her complaints against Mr Gurassa, which Oxfam subsequently concluded were not sufficiently evidenced.” Oxfam was asked to comment. Begum told Devex she lost confidence in the review process after being asked by the investigator what responsibility she bore for the board’s alleged conduct toward her, which she described as “biased.” She alleged that she was offered over £130,000 by Oxfam’s board to withdraw her complaint against Gurassa and leave the organization. A spokesperson for Oxfam did not respond to a request for comment on whether any severance or financial settlement was discussed or offered to Begum. It is alleged in Begum’s statement that a board member approached the former CEO subsequent to the meeting to inform her that Gurassa wanted her to be removed from her post and that a “market mapping” process had already begun to find a new CEO. A spokesperson for Gurassa denied that any succession planning discussions took place while he was chair, while a spokesperson for Oxfam did not address the allegation. On Nov. 17, 2025, Howlett Brown, an external workplace investigations firm, was appointed to examine the staff concerns. Gurassa stepped down as chair of Oxfam GB on Nov. 27, 2025. In her statement, Begum has alleged that the former chair’s departure was not accurately characterized by the charity as it told media at the time that Gurassa had completed his term of office, while Begum said an extension to the former chair’s tenure meant he should have stayed in the post until November 2026. In the statement, she claimed that Gurassa left “one day after” she met with the U.K.’s charity regulator, The Charity Commission, to discuss her concerns “about governance failures and conduct” of the board. Oxfam’s articles of association provide for chair terms of up to five years. A spokesman for Oxfam said that Gurassa was appointed to a five-year term in 2020 and agreed to stay on for an additional year early in 2025 but subsequently decided to leave at the end of the original term. The spokesperson said all the charity’s previous chairs had served up to five years. He added that Begum’s legal representatives first informed trustees — but not the former chair — on Nov. 18, 2025, that she had filed a whistleblowing report with The Charity Commission. He said the chair had recused himself on Oct. 30 from any involvement in board discussions over the grievance made against him. Gurassa’s spokesperson said the board’s decision to dismiss Begum was taken “some weeks” after he had completed his term of office. According to Begum’s statement, when the Howlett Brown review concluded, the former CEO was not provided with a copy of the findings, nor given the opportunity to respond. Oxfam has previously not responded to questions from Devex about whether Begum was given a right of reply. In a statement issued Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, the charity said the review found “substantive and very serious concerns” relating to Begum’s conduct, decision-making and leadership style that were “consistent and systemic.” It said the board had a responsibility to act to address leadership behavior that was having “serious, and negative consequences” on the organization. It also confirmed that a previously announced review of Oxfam’s governance processes is now underway. That same Friday, Channel 4 reported that Begum’s employment tribunal claim referenced concerns about antisemitism. In an interview with the broadcaster that aired on the day, Begum said it had become “very hard to hold on to neutrality and impartiality” within the organization in discussions relating to Gaza, and described internal pressure around the use of the term “genocide” as “quite risky” without careful legal analysis. Israel’s Ministry for Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism said on Monday that Oxfam would cease operations in Gaza later this month, citing concerns over neutrality following the interview. In a statement, Israeli minister Amichai Chikli said Begum’s public remarks reflected “the narrative and intensity of antisemitism within Oxfam.” However, Oxfam and dozens of other INGOs warned in early January that their registrations were due to expire following measures announced by the Israeli authorities on Dec. 30, 2025, triggering a 60-day period after which organizations would be required to cease operations if not renewed. Oxfam said the charity “unequivocally and categorically” rejected any allegation of antisemitism and that this ran counter to the charity’s core humanitarian principles of impartiality and humanity. Begum is understood to have felt unable to share her side of the story before now, as she claims that a week after her departure from the charity, a representative from the law firm Baker McKenzie, acting for Oxfam, warned her lawyer that she “must stop speaking to the media.” She said she had not spoken to any media at this point. A spokesperson for Oxfam confirmed that Baker McKenzie were long-standing pro bono advisers to Oxfam but said it would be inappropriate to comment on the content of without prejudice communications with the former CEO and her legal representatives. A spokesperson for The Charity Commission confirmed in a statement that it is gathering wider information and continuing to consider its regulatory response. “We have made no findings at this time,” she said.