Fireworks expected at Bosso AGM

The Bosso AGM is set for tomorrow morning at the Highlanders Clubhouse.

Highlanders’ bona fide members are eagerly waiting for the outcome of investigations of financial mismanagement levelled against former treasurer Odiel Nkomo after auditors discovered that the club might have been prejudiced of $37 000 from gate-takings.

The auditors submitted their report to the executive who in turn forwarded it to the board of directors in September last year.

In their report to Highlanders, Grant Thornton Auditors noted that there were discrepancies between what Nkomo had recorded as match day earnings and figures obtained from the Premier Soccer League.

Nkomo, whose alleged poor handling of funds was exposed by the same audit company in August when the club sought to find out how he came to be owed $80 000, seems to be deeper in trouble.

Gate takings have in the past been the club’s cash cow and the members want the club leadership to take the matters to relevant authorities.

“Key issues on the AGM, financial report agenda should border on the audit report and what became of it. Interestingly it will be more instructive to get the view of the previous auditors. The discussion of the report should not necessarily zero on Odiel, as an individual per-se but most importantly it should interrogate the financial control systems at Highlanders.

“How and why the previous auditors clearly missed the elephant in the living room forever remains everyone’s guess or it was some commissioned oversight will be another conjecture.

“Lack of compelling explanations and convincing account of what transpired after the Grant Thornton audit report would all but ring pertinent and fundamental calls to restructure our  entire board of directors whose relevance and efficiency would be palpably questionable.

“This all exposes and gives justification to the frustrations that confronted Titus Ncube when he eventually decided to call it a day and resigned from Highlanders board,” said a life member.

Another member was hopeful that the issue of misappropriation of funds would be finally put to rest tomorrow.

He said if the discrepancies were not addressed, it would be difficult for potential sponsors to pour their funds knowing that there is no accountability at the club.

“The problem is that we sit for meetings and be told that we have huge debts yet we do not know who we owe. We are beginning to suspect that some people within the board are sweeping matters under the carpet and now there is too much dirt underneath which needs to be taken out.

“If the club used money to investigate and the auditors found irregularities, why then did the board after getting the report from the executive decide to keep quiet? What then was the reason to do the investigation and use money if you decide not to publish the outcome?

“These are questions which we expect the board chairman should answer in presentation,” a member said.

Another issue that is likely to take centre stage is the delay in appointment of assistant coaches and manager.

“The executive should avoid the system of mob management of the technical team’s structure by waiting for the AGM to appoint Kelvin Kaindu’s assistants at the expense of adequate preparations. It is really sad and un-imaginable for coach Kaindu to manage a group of 50 or so players alone,” said another member.