Ex-Zifa boss ready for music

judicial officers, to defend himself against charges that he let the Asiagate match-fixing scam flourish under his watch.

The Harare businessman and farmer said there were too many contradictions and inaccuracies in the submissions carried in the Asiagate report that it was certain to turn the boardrooms of the national game into a legal battleground for the next few years.

Nyatanga said he feared that what was an exercise to tame the ghost of match-fixing appears to have been hijacked to settle old scores, including suspensions imposed on some officials at the turn of the millennium.

The former Zifa president was slammed by the association’s investigating committee, in their final report, for failing to rein in former chief executive officer Henrietta Rushwaya, who was fingered as the mastermind of the match-fixing scandals involving the Warriors.

Nyatanga was also fingered by former Warriors’ manager Ernest “Mapepa” Sibanda who claimed, in submissions presented by the investigating committee, that Nyatanga collected US$10 000 when he came for the Merdeka Cup in Malaysia in 2007.

Sibanda said Nyatanga spent only one night in Malaysia.
“Mr Wellington Nyatanga, then Zifa president, came to visit us just for the opening game and pocketing US$10 000, or so I was made to understand,” said Sibanda in quotes attributed to him by the Zifa investigating committee during an interview.

“He (Nyatanga) only one night and his room was then taken by head coach Sunday Chidzambwa.
“My observation was that when the (Zifa) president came, he appeared to collect the US$10 000. He did not show any interest in what was happening.”

Yesterday Nyatanga responded:

• Yes, I went to the Merdeka Cup in 2007.

• I joined our team in South Africa and we were together, throughout the travel and our stay, until my return.

• I deny that I was paid US$10 000 by anyone in Malaysia as alleged by Mr Ernest Sibanda.

• I stayed with the group for four nights and left on the fifth day. I travelled back early because of other business commitments, hence, I could not see the tournament through to the finals.

• The money being alleged to have been paid out to our players at half-time, during the matches, I wouldn’t know but maybe Mr Sibanda should know better since he was the team manager.

• All the time, during the matches, I watched the game with other invited VVIPs from other countries’ football associations. We were seated in the VVIP Tribunal, including a delegation from Lesotho, who were part of the teams from Africa.

• I want to categorically state that the whole Zifa Board Members, during my tenure, never got involved in match-fixing. If there are individuals, who were involved in match-fixing, they must answer for themselves.

• I would be happy to be interviewed by any committee to be set by the current Zifa Board or SRC and I will speak on behalf of the previous board since I was its chairman, not for some people to do that on our behalf, when they were not members of the previous board.

• Football must be the winner at the end of the day.

The former Zifa president said it was interesting that Sibanda said in his submissions that the Zimbabwe Select team failed to qualify for the quarter-finals during the Merdeka Cup.
“Players were paid approximately between US$3 000-US$4 000 each and officials, US$7 000 each,” said Sibanda in his submission.

“I was really shocked by these big monies, especially in that we were paid some good monies at half-time, when we were losing and then also failing to qualify for the quarter-finals.”
The Zimbabwe Select team at the Merdeka Cup, in fact, reached the semi-finals of the tournament and were beaten 1-3 by Oman.
Nyatanga said it was wrong for Sibanda to also claim that there were no officials from the Malaysian FA during the Merdeka tour.
“We were invited by the Malaysian FA officially for that tour and we went to their offices, to present our delegation, and met the officials who gave us a Football of Malysia special plaque, which I have brought here, to mark our participation in their tournament,” said Nyatanga.

“That FAM plaque was presented when the team manager Mapepa was there and records at the FAM offices will show that we visited them in 2007.”