‘Exhaust football remedies first’

impose further sanctions on any individuals who would have sought recourse at the courts law arguing that such action was in as this also violates the Fifa statutes.
Fifa yesterday wrote to Zifa chief executive Jonathan Mashingaidze in the wake of a High Court application that has been lodged by former Warriors coach Sunday “Mhofu’’ Chidzambwa, former Zifa chief executive Henrietta Rushwaya and ex-Premier Soccer League fixtures-secretary Godfrey Japajapa at the end of last month.
The trio was challenging the legality of the Independent Ethics Committee chaired by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Ahmed Ebrahim in deliberating on and passing recommendation on the match-fixing scandal.
Chidzambwa, Rushwaya, and Japajapa are among the officials and players who were handed with life bans by Zifa for their alleged roles in the Asiagate scandal.
However, Fifa director of legal affairs Marco Villiger and the world soccer body’s head of disciplinary and governance Marc Cavaliero told Zifa that the trio and any other player or official banned over Asiagate would need to seek recourse through the Zifa structures because taking to the courts of law was prohibited in terms of Article 62. Paragraph 2 of the Fifa statutes.
“We refer to the letter dated 30 October 2012 received from the official Sunday Marimo Chidzambga regarding the bans for players and officials convicted of the match-fixing and illegal betting scandal involving Zimbabwe’s national team.
“We refer in particular to the correspondence received from the legal representative of the official Sunday Marimo Chidzambga dated 30 October 2012, a copy of which is enclosed for your attention.
“In particular, we took note that the official Sunday Marimo Chidzambga together with three other individuals involved in the above mentioned matter (in particular officials Henrietta Rushwaya and Godfrey Japajapa) has apparently lodged an application before the High Court in Zimbabwe against a decision rendered by the Zifa Independent Disciplinary ad-hoc committee.
“In this respect we would like to draw your attention to Art.64, par 2 of the Fifa statutes, which stipulates that “recourse to ordinary courts of law is prohibited unless specifically provided for in the Fifa regulation’.
“ . . . as well as part 3 of the provision which underlines that member associations shall ensure that this stipulation is rigorously implemented within the respective association and further provides that ‘the association shall impose sanctions on any party that fails to respect this obligation’.
“In view of the above and considering that associations shall ensure that this stipulation is implemented at national level and if need be, impose sanctions on any party that fails to respect the obligations previously mentioned (art 64. par 3 of the Fifa statutes), we respectfully ask you to keep us informed of any claim lodged with an ordinary court by players, and/or officials involved in the above mentioned matter that comes to your attention and in that event, of the appropriate action the Zimbabwe Football Association will take against the aforementioned officials in order to guarantee the respect of the Fifa statutes,’’ wrote Villiger and Cavaliero.
Mashingaidze said the correspondence from Fifa underlined the importance of the need for the member associations to safeguard of               their statutes and urged all appellants to respect and follow the                   regulations.
“Fifa have said we should impose sanctions on those individuals who take football matters to court and my appeal to those who have cases which they want to contest to remember to exhaust all the domestic channels that are available for them and they must please note that all appeals are lodged through the secretariat and following the proper appeal procedure,’’ Mashingaidze said.
Zifa yesterday commissioned a three-member appeal committee that will deal specifically with all protests related to the Asiagate bans.