Chronicle Editor
Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
BULAWAYO City FC has significantly reduced players’ outstanding salaries and allowances backdating to 2019.
The municipal club has been in dire need of financial assistance and has been struggling to pay its staff and players for more than six months as their sponsors were adversely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
City were on the verge of sealing a deal with Ingwebu Breweries when the lockdown started at the end of March.
Bulawayo City chairman Jerry Sibanda said they now owe players two months’ salaries for May and June.
Sibanda said their aim is to keep cushioning the players so that they resist the temptation of being involved in risky money games.
“We’re grateful to our business partners, who made sure that we cushion the boys during hard times of the Covid-19 pandemic. We understand that this is not an easy period, especially for businesses, but the support we got really helped us. We also applaud our players for the discipline they’ve shown during this period,” said Sibanda.
He appealed to players to maintain the professional attitude they have been exhibiting even when the season resumes.
At the beginning of the month, Caps United players were involved in a nasty clash with one of their directors after storming his office in protest over unpaid salaries.
Despite going for long periods without being paid, City players have remained collected, something Sibanda attributes to ongoing engagements between management and them.
City got an $85 000 financial boost a fortnight ago from Bulawayo businessman Amkela Nyoni after hearing that the players hadn’t been paid since the beginning of the year.
Nyoni, managing director of Genstorm Global Supplies, which specialises in mining equipment, also donated $40 000 and 30 soccer balls to City in March.
City also got $40 000 and foodstuffs from the Johane Masowe weChishanu Selbourne Park apostolic sect leader Madzibaba Manuel Mutumwa. — @ZililoR
Online Reporter