CAPS spin into crisis

Grace Chingoma Senior Sports Reporter
CAPS United yesterday exploded into a fireball of unrest with players boycotting training over outstanding allowances and going to the offices of former club vice president Farai Jere to plead with him to return to the Green Machine to ease their financial woes. The Harare giants have been sitting on a time bomb for some time this year and a player revolt two weeks ago, over the same issues, was quickly resolved when some Good Samaritans came in and promised to help them.

The players claim they haven’t been paid their salaries for August, with arrears now three weeks overdue, while they were also paid only half of their pay cheques for July which means they are owed a month-and-a-half’s salary.

CAPS United have lost just one league match in their last 11 games, the 0-1 defeat at the hands of champions Dynamos at Rufaro on Sunday, but the players say they have not been rewarded for their good run on the field and promises have largely been unfulfilled.

They claim two of their winning bonuses remain unpaid.
The players claim that club owner Twine Phiri, who is also the chairman of the Premier Soccer League, has not been there for them during their campaign to try and win the league championship this year and, after soldiering on for long, they decided yesterday that it was time to make their voice                                                                                       heard.

Yesterday, they reported for training as usual, expecting that their coaches and captains who had been scheduled to meet club owner on Wednesday evening, had brought feedback concerning how issues that were affecting their welfare would be addressed.

But the players’ anger exploded when they were advised that their captains and coaches had spent close to four hours, on Wednesday evening, waiting for a meeting with Phiri and club chief executive Joe Makuvire that never took off because the pair didn’t pitch up.
The players then told their coaches that they were not going to train, unless their dues had been paid, and some decided that they approach Jere, who remains a shareholder in the club with 25 percent of the stake, to reconsider his decision to walk away and return to address their challenges.

The players — led by senior players such as vice-skipper Tawanda “Rambo” Munyanduri — then trooped to Jere’s offices in Eastlea.
Jere, a Harare businessman who has cut ties with local football as he pursues his dream to build a five-star US$145 million Hilton Hotel in Harare and also complete his accountancy degree at the University of Zimbabwe, was not at his offices when the players arrived.
When he was advised that the players had arrived at his office, Jere informed his staff to order them to leave, saying he was not in a position to interact with them, in any capacity, since the administration of CAPS United was now in the hands of other people.

When a crew of media personnel arrived at the offices, the players ran away from the cameras.
A senior player, who cannot be named because he fears he could be victimised, narrated their plight.

“We have been patient for a long time but now it has reached boiling point. The problem is we don’t even know whether our director is concerned about our welfare or not,” said the player.

“He doesn’t engage us or, at least, show us he is making an effort to look for money. It appears us players and the technical department are the only ones concerned with the club.

“We are surviving on handouts from supporters who give us bus fares to go for training. We have been reduced to destitutes and, at times, some players don’t come for training as they wouldn’t have any bus fare.

“Landlords are kicking out a number of players from their lodgings. What angered us the most today (yesterday) was that the coaches and our representatives, who were supposed to meet Mr Phiri on Wednesday, could not do so.

“We hear they waited for close to four hours, trying to phone the chief executive who eventually switched off his phone.
“We then decided to go and see Mr Jere and seek help because our families are starving. We just felt maybe he would help us, as a shareholder in the club, because the situation at our homes is really bad.

“Mr Phiri doesn’t come to us or address or tell us what is going on. Can you imagine since the season began we only met him once when we were having a photo shoot for a new kit.

“The coaches have been trying to push us to just play our football, but we are suffering at the club.”
The players who converged at Jere’s offices walked from their training base at Danny Bismarck to Eastlea.

Yesterday, CAPS United chief executive Joe Makuvire described the incident as unfortunate.
“It’s extremely disturbing. If they were running away from the media, it means what they were doing is clandestine,” said Makuvire.
“The issue of money, I am responsible and should make sure people are paid what is due to them. I can confirm since the beginning of the season we owe the players a month’s salary and two games’ outstanding bonuses.

“The complication arose after an unplanned national team break. Of late, we have been working very hard. We believe it is our responsibility to pay our players. We will deal with it within the bounds detected by the law.
“Those willing to leave the club are free to do so and we will work with those interested.”