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MUSA Mandaza’s Zifa Southern Region running mates were confirmed in Hwange on Saturday at a meeting attended by Matabeleland North Division One clubs.Mandaza is gunning for the chairman’s post which has been held by Morgan Dube who took over from the suspended Gift Banda two years ago. He is facing the challenge of Mandla Moyo.
The former Zifa Southern Region chairman, Mandaza who lost to Bulawayo businessman Banda in 2010, will have Gaylord Madhunguza of ZPC Hwange running for the vice-chairmanship. Other board member positions aspirants in their team are former Zifa panel referee Bryton Malandule, Zimbabwe Saints’ Jabulani Chinyangarara and Khumbulani Mbano from Hwange Juniors.
Madhunguza confirmed that Mandaza and the other three were his running mates at the weekend. Mandaza said before the Highlanders versus Harare City match yesterday that he indeed had been to Hwange to campaign.
“I have Musa Mandaza for chairman. JB (Jabulani) Chinyangarara from Saints, Mbano from Colliery.
He (Mandaza) will be here yes I worked with him long back,” said Madhunguza on Saturday.
He said Matabeleland North teams do not want to see everything run from Bulawayo.
“We want soccer to be decentralised in terms of leadership,” said the Hwange-based administrator.
Madhunguza said their campaign meeting had gone well with Malandule donating 10 balls to each of the teams that attended. They are earmarked for use in junior development.
“It was good my brother, the balls were from Malandule and each team got 10, they are for junior development at the clubs,” said Madhunguza.
He said as Matabeleland North clubs they were eager for fair representation, transparency and accountability.
Sponsorship, he said would be key among their targets and they would want to see improvement in junior development. They would also run administrative courses to improve managers’ knowledge of football management.
He said they would want to see the Southern Region clubs pay similar fees to referees and in affiliation fees like other regions.
“Revival of cup competitions within our region, aligning our region to other regions in terms of affiliation fees and referees’ fees as well as having a say in match officials’ handling of the game, to have Fair Play and let football be the winner not individuals or individual teams is the way to go,” said Madhunguza.
Tawanda Ruzive will challenge Madhunguza for the vice-chairmanship. He has been part of the regional board and was behind the extension of the Bulawayo, Zifa Southern Region offices with Banda, Dube, Patrick Malunga and Brian Moyo before Zifa asked them to stop construction work which would have seen several offices built.
Other candidates in the running for regional office as board members are Malunga, Sydney Madzvimbo and Tumediso Ndlovu.
Bongani Ndlovu