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Bukhosi Mangena Sports Correspondent
THE Women’s Soccer League has welcomed Zifa president Phillip Chiyangwa’s decision to halt elections as this would have been unconstitutional. The clubs engaged Chiyangwa last month over the issue and the Zifa boss called off the elections in accordance with the association’s constitution Article 41(1) (f) as read with Article 47.
The articles state that the women’s football committee is responsible for organising women’s football competitions and deals with all matters relating to women’s football as the supreme and central body for women’s football and is only subordinate to the Zifa board as a standing committee.
Chiyangwa has said he will assemble a 16-team league whose club leaders will form a board of governors that will in turn elect a substantive management committee, as is the case with the Premier Soccer League (PSL).
Zifa had ordered all its affiliates to hold elections, which included the Women’s Football League, but the clubs opposed the move and even threatened to disband the league arguing that their executive committee led by the suspended Miriam Sibanda was unconstitutionally dissolved.
The league’s spokesperson Wilbert Rambanepasi said they were happy that someone on the Zifa board was following the constitution.
“Our grievances have been looked into for the first time in the history of Zimbabwe football and we are happy about that. We have been overlooked always and we would like to thank the president for a job well done because other people have been using their positions to push their own agendas, which are not about our football,” said Rambanepasi.
Chiyangwa said his priority was to put women’s football in order as time for the Mighty Warriors’ maiden appearance at the Olympic Games draws closer. The Olympics will be held in the Brazilian port city of Rio de Janeiro in August.
derick.khumalo