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Veronica Gwaze
Sports Reporter
DESPITE ZIFA’s Player Status Committee clearing Obriel Chirinda to turn out for Premier Soccer League champions Ngezi Platinum Stars, it seems the forceful striker’s woes are far from over.
This comes after Harare giants Dynamos, who lost in their bid to have Chirinda declared their player, have regrouped and are protesting the ZIFA decision.
Dynamos claim the ZIFA Player Status Committee had unfairly” adjudicated on the matter.
Club executive chairman Moses Maunganidze claims Dynamos were not given a chance to appear before the committee by the principles of natural justice.
Maunganidze said Dynamos had anticipated a round table meeting at which they would present their evidence.
“We are going to sit and go through the judgment again. Our query is that when we were asked to avail documents to do with Chirinda, we did not submit our heads of argument,” Maunganidze said.
“The hope was that the matter was going to be heard physically hence we would be invited for oral submission.
“All we had done was to serve them with documents, chronicling what transpired between parties but we were only surprised to wake up to a judgment.
“We were not alive to the fact that the documents we had submitted were the ones used to pass judgment so we were not given a chance to defend our side.”
The Player Status Committee on Monday ruled that Ngezi Platinum’s acquisition of the ex-Bulawayo Chiefs striker was above board and granted him permission to resume playing.
The committee then allowed the PSL to release Chirinda’s licence, which had been withheld because of the dispute.
Chirinda has been caught in a wrangle in which champions Ngezi and Chibuku Super Cup winners Dynamos both claimed to have signed the player during the off-season transfer window.
As a result of the stalemate, Chirinda has been inactive for 14 games.
It had to take the intervention of the Footballers Union of Zimbabwe to jolt ZIFA into deliberating on the dispute.
The two clubs and the player were requested to provide their documents in support of their positions and allow the committee to look into the matter.
Chirinda, who was registered with Bulawayo Chiefs at the time, stated that he was approached by Dynamos coach Genesis Mangombe on December 24, 2023, with an offer for him to join his team.
The player allegedly informed the coach that he was still contracted to Bulawayo Chiefs. Mangombe is said to have assured him that Dynamos would engage Chiefs over his services.
Chirinda then received US$4 800 from Mangombe, with the agreement being that if the deal did not sail through, the player would refund the coach.
Later Bulawayo Chiefs informed Chirinda that they had been approached by Ngezi Platinum for his signature.
Chirinda, noting that Dynamos had not engaged Chiefs, agreed to join the miners before reportedly making efforts to refund Dynamos as agreed.
But with no transaction having taken place, Dynamos took the case to the PSL claiming they had been the first to sign the player.
In their ruling, the Player Status Committee noted that Ngezi’s acquisition of the striker was procedural.
“We also find no fault with the conduct of Bulawayo Chiefs.
“They signed a contract with Ngezi Platinum only, they did not sign a contract with Dynamos FC,” reads part of the judgment.
Resultantly, the supposed contract between Dynamos and Chirinda dated December 19, 2023, was declared invalid and of no force and effect as it was signed while the player was still contracted to the Chiefs.
Dynamos, however, insists they were hard done by the Players Status Committee and are looking to fight on by lodging their protest with the ZIFA Appeals Committee.
Online Reporter