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THE never-ending ownership wrangles at local football giants Dynamos have resurfaced again.
It’s surprising we are seeing this again, almost 60 years after the club was founded.
These are issues that should have been resolved long back.
However, because of murky structures and lack of organisation inherent at the club, it appears these problems are likely to recur to eternity, that is if the club manages to survive the chaos.
Dynamos, as one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Zimbabwe, should actually be leading by example in terms of professionalism and good governance.
The boardroom squabbles took a new twist in the last few days when former Dynamos players convened in Harare and selected a new board of trustees to run the affairs of the club.
The former players elected a 10-member Board of Trustees with club legend Ernest Kamba as chairman and deputised by another illustrious son, Sunday “Mhofu” Chidzambwa.
Cremio Mapfumo was elected treasurer and Eric Aisam as secretary in the new set up.
Other respected Dynamos sons like David George, Moses Chunga, Clayton Munemo, Labani Kandi, Makwinji Soma-Phiri and Gina Kapfunde are part of the newly-elected board.
A new electoral college was also put in place.
The former DeMbare players claim they were empowered by the club’s founding constitution, which all the participants agreed was the only guiding legal document.
But the move has stoked the fires again with the DeMbare boardroom.
Incumbent chairman of the board, Bernard Marriot, has refused to acknowledge both the meeting and its resolutions.
It is a direct attack on his seat and control of the club.
Marriot has enjoyed the chairmanship of the DeMbare board since 2014.
He replaced the late Freddy Mkwesha, who had held the position in an acting capacity for over a year following the death of Richard Chiminya in late 2012.
DeMbare, who had experienced a tumultuous ride in the 2000s, had enjoyed a period of stability and improved direction under Chiminya.
Since Marriot took over, there have been at least two attempts to kick out his leadership as the former players feel the club has long disregarded the observance of its constitution in the running of its affairs.
The structures at Dynamos have always been a bone of contention between the former players.
Dynamos was formed in 1963 by a group of about 20 players, who went on to establish a constitution to guide how the club should be run.
The biggest problem, however, is that the constitution was never fully adhered to.
This could be the major reason why the wrangles keep popping up.
Clause 15.1.1 of Dynamos’ 1963 constitution says “founder and former players are the only bona fide members of the club”.
It appears the interpretation of the constitution is also another issue.
Incumbent chairman of the Dynamos board, Marriot, says DeMbare belongs to the founder members and reasons that the term “former players” also referred to the founding members in their retirement.
As a result, ownership was limited to this exclusive group.
This week, the former Dynamos winger said it was the founding fathers and their descendants who should have exclusive control of the club and, as the sole surviving member of the 1963 founding fathers, he now holds the keys and will only handover to his children and those of the founding members in the event he also dies.
On the other hand, the other Dynamos players believe the term “former players” refers to all that have played for the club.
The constitution says an agreed number of these former players are voted into an “electoral college”, which then elects a board of trustees, consisting of 10 members.
The board of trustees has a three-year tenure and was eligible for re-election at an annual general meeting.
The trustees had to be elected from members of the club.
They, in turn, were empowered as a board to appoint an executive committee of six members to run the day-to-day affairs of the club.
Only former players of proven leadership qualities were eligible for appointment.
They held office for a period of three years, but were eligible for re-election at an annual general meeting.
This has not been happening at Dynamos. There are claims and counter-claims that the constitution has been amended.
There are also claims of greed and corruption taking centre stage.
But, for the sake of the progress of the club, Dynamos members simply need to find one another.
Dynamos are by far the most successful club in Zimbabwe. But they have failed to evolve and match contemporaries like Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates in the neighbouring South Africa. The club risks running aground if these squabbles are to persist.
The interests of the club should be put ahead of selfish egos.
Online Reporter