Benza aims for political office

Sports Reporter

HERENTALS owner and player Innocent Benza has always scored remarkable firsts.

He is the first footballer in the country to make his top-flight debut at the age of 46.

Now 51 and still an active player in the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League, Benza surprised all and sundry when making his debut in 2018 upon Herentals’ promotion into the top-flight league.

He played 29 games in a season the newcomers ended in sixth place.

They even underlined the incredible showing conceding the second fewest goals in the league.

Only champions FC Platinum had a better defensive record.

Benza and his son, Tinotenda, also became the first set of father and son to play in the same team in the history of the local Premiership.

In 2019, the Rusape-bred man became the oldest player to score a goal in the Castle Lager Premiership when netting a screamer against Chapungu at Rufaro.

In a domestic league where players struggle to play beyond the age of 33, that record could stand for a long time to come.

And Innocent Benza could as well become the first active Premiership footballer to bag a parliamentary seat should his bid to represent Mutasa Central Constituency be successful.

But he should first pull through in the ZANU-PF primary elections set for this Saturday. He is not the only football stakeholder who will be entering the race on Saturday.

CAPS United president Farai Jere, who is also the PSL chairman, is aiming to land the right to represent the revolutionary party in Murehwa West Constituency.

Jere’s CAPS United subordinate Charlie Jones, who is the Green Machine’s chief executive, is eyeing a councillor’s seat for Ward 2 in Sunningdale.

The trio have been campaigning over the past few months.

And with President Mnangagwa announcing yesterday that the ZANU-PF primary elections will be held on Saturday, it will be interesting to see how the three will perform.

It’s not a new phenomenon though for sportspeople to enter the active political panorama as the likes of former ZIFA president Philip Chiyangwa and his ex-deputy Omega Sibanda were and are still legislators for their respective constituencies.

Winning candidates from the primary elections will represent the revolutionary party in the upcoming harmonised elections whose date has not yet been announced.