Chronicle Editor
Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
FORMER Fifa president Sepp Blatter once warned that match-fixing was the biggest danger to the integrity of the game.
Determined to tackle the cancerous match-fixing bug that was spreading the world over like a veld fire, the world soccer governing body decided to launch a web page to enable individuals to make anonymous reports of corruption by officials and attempts at match-fixing.
Fifa said infringements of the Fifa code of ethics and violations of Fifa’s regulatory framework relating to match manipulation can be securely reported and treated with the strictest confidentiality in its drive to arrest match-fixing.
They made a passionate appeal for all stakeholders to report match manipulation and in 2013 issued a statement indicating that Fifa was convinced that every individual can contribute to promoting transparency and integrity through vigilance and a sense of responsibility.
Fifa appealed to governments and the police to clamp down on illegal gambling rings that incited players to manipulate games for profits.
Zimbabwe was not spared and was hit by Asiagate that saw a number of officials and players banned following overwhelming evidence that they “sold” games.
Last season, allegations of match-fixing hit the PSL, with two cases levelled against then relegation fighters Herentals, who were accused of attempting to manipulate the result of their league game against Black Rhinos.
After the Rhinos case, Herentals have to clear their name for allegedly invading Bulawayo Chiefs camp on the eve of the final match of the season, which the Students won 1-0. Allegations are that a Herentals official (name supplied) and an official from a Bulawayo based club approached Chiefs coach Thulani Sibanda with an “irresistible” offer to “buy” the game that was turned down. They then approached the Chiefs players and the Twitter Kings reported them to the PSL.
The PSL disciplinary committee found Herentals guilty of match manipulation, ruling that the points Herentals gained from their 3-0 “thumping” of Rhinos be forfeited and slapped them with a $300 000 fine.
Herentals team manager Oliver Chirenga, the alleged “mastermind” of the match-fixing scandal, was handed a 10-year ban from all football activities and also fined $20 000.
Former Black Rhinos team manager Gift Kamuriwo, who lost his job after confessing to taking US$600 that he was supposed to give to certain players, was also found guilty and slapped with a three-year ban.
Kamuriwo is said to have presented US$300 to his club bosses, which he claimed was the remainder of the money given to him by Herentals.
Herentals have since appealed against the PSL disciplinary committee’s judgment to Zifa.
According to Zifa sources, the cost of filing the notice to appeal is in the region of $40 000.
Zifa appear highly conflicted in handling this case as beneficiaries of Herentals’ benevolence. Last week, about four days before the PSL disciplinary committee’s judgment, Herentals presented a “timely” donation to Zifa for the girls’ national Under-17 World Cup qualifier against Botswana. The donation included funding the girls’ camping fees, food, offering $500 each as match appearance fees and scholarships for all the girls in camp.
The donation might have been in “good” faith, but the timing raises eyebrows.
One may be tempted to think Herentals were bribing Zifa as just days after their gesture, they are now appealing to the same association that accepted their “gift”.
This leaves Zifa in a highly compromised position and could be an issue of payback time for the national association that has for a long time been benefiting from Herentals’ goodwill, which include transport for the Warriors locally.
Financially crippled Zifa officials are in the habit of approaching “well-sponsored” clubs seeking favours. Besides Herentals, another team that brought Zifa under spotlight is Zifa Southern Region Division One League side Talen Vision, who were once accused of match-fixing before ZPC Hwange withdrew the case last season.
The Vision case presented Zifa with a headache, as the national association benefited from the club’s benevolence during the year. The club assisted Zifa during their Chan games played in Bulawayo.
To date, there are allegations that a board member from the Southern Region (name supplied) has literally been fighting “tooth and nail”, threatening match officials and demanding that referees who officiated Bulawayo City games give him match reports as he tries to build a case against the local authority from Vision’s corner.
The official is said to have “ordered” the Zifa secretariat not to confirm Bulawayo City as Southern Region champions, saying they have a pending case, alleging that the local authority side used suspended players in some of their games, parroting the same complaints Vision raised after failing to secure promotion to the PSL.
The delayed confirmation of City has reportedly irked Zifa Southern Region board, which dismissed Vision’s claims after going through the yellow and red cards audit.
The question is, is Zifa’s continued acceptance of donations from people they are supposed to superintend over not compromising the association?
Will they deliver fair rulings even though they might argue that there is an independent appeals committee dealing with the matter? – @ZililoR
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