adminPHILLIP “PC” Chiyangwa’s December 5, 2015, Zifa elections victory triggered mixed reactions, with some people saying he could be the messiah Zimbabwean football needed, while some doubted his capabilities to revive the embattled association.
Some of the notable critics were sports journalists that included The Herald sports reporter Collin Matiza and ZBC sportscaster Ian Zvoma, who took to social media to express their misgivings about the outcome of the Zifa elections.
In a Facebook post, Zvoma wrote: “Someone said to me football has gone to the dogs and I said mmmmm … But it looks like the dogs have come to football.”
Matiza’s December 5 posts on Facebook read: “Mr Bean is now running football in Zimbabwe….I just like it . . . Mickey Mouse football in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwean football has been lying in state in the graveyard from the day Cuthbert Dube took over at Zifa and we’ve found an undertaker and it has now been buried without honours.
“Somebody surely must be held accountable for this catastrophe…this is worse than the Asiagate scandal.”
Three weeks later after Zifa announced that national team coach Callisto Pasuwa had been fired for refusing to budge on the national association’s demands of relieving manager Sharrif Mussa and replacing him with Wellington Mpandare, Matiza took to Facebook to remind the councillors about the blunder they had made on December 5.
“On December 5 they created a monster . . . and the rest, as they say, is history!”
This was followed by another post which read: “They sold Zim football for 30 pieces of silver and it’s now haunting them…. Hamusati.”
After realising that the nation wasn’t amused with the decision to fire Pasuwa, Chiyangwa, who had thrown his deputy Omega Sibanda into the firing line to deliver the bad news, suddenly popped up from his leave to reverse the decision.
From my understanding and sources within Zifa, including the coaches that had been approached to replace Pasuwa, PC had created the problem, as he had called some of them notifying them about their new jobs.
Sibanda was the sacrificial lamb and PC emerged a hero from the confusion he had created.
The Pasuwa issue is now history, but we haven’t forgotten about this monumental boob that Chiyangwa presided over within weeks of assuming office.
As it is, Zifa seems bent on throwing spanners into the Premier Soccer League, which has been operating smoothly since securing the Castle Lager sponsorship in 2011, a year after Twine Phiri was voted into the PSL as chairman.
The PSL has managed to cultivate sponsorship confidence under the guidance of Phiri.
Some of the sponsors that came on board during Phiri’s tenure include Mbada Diamonds, who sponsored a 16-team tournament; BancABC bankrolled a Super Eight competition and were replaced by mobile phone network operator NetOne last year.
The PSL also managed to convince delta beverages to fund the 16-team Chibuku Super Cup in 2014 and 2015.
Arguably Africa’s biggest sport broadcaster SuperSport were brought in to beam live league and cup matches, with the club getting some royalties from television rights.
The amounts paid by SuperSport might be viewed as little, but the fact remains, PSL has managed to showcase Zimbabwean football to the rest of the world through its partnership with SuperSport.
Why then is PC bent on throwing spanners into a seemingly well-oiled machine?
The Zifa president seems to have lots of energy and I commend him for signing a million dollar deal with Wicknell Chivayo.
After that deal, I was looking forward to seeing Chiyangwa directing his efforts to more productive matters, but alas, he seems bent on removing Phiri and his interference in the PSL is making sponsors uncomfortable.
Last week he met the PSL board of governors in Harare and although the clubs’ bosses still backed Phiri, Chiyangwa dismissed them by announcing that Phiri had been relieved of his duties and his deputy, Peter Dube,was now the acting PSL president.
That on its own shows that PC doesn’t respect the will of the people, let alone the constitution that governs PSL.
What PC should be doing is ensuring that all clubs adhere to the Fifa Club Licensing.
Besides club structures, Club Licensing demands that teams submit youth development programmes which Zifa must ensure, are active.
With Club Licensing, the issue of clubs’ representatives will easily be addressed because the PSL constitution was crafted in a way that the board of governors be people who can make instant decisions on behalf of their clubs instead of going back to consult with their bosses.
Club Licensing makes it easier for regulatory processes because all records in terms of club structure will be there at either Zifa or the PSL offices.
Actually, Caps United is one of the few clubs that can easily pass Club Licensing because they are a registered company with clear ownership structures.
Farai Jere is the club president with Lewis Uriri as board chairman, while Phiri is the executive chairman, who oversees the club’s day-to-day business.
Most of the clubs in the league, including giants Highlanders and Dynamos, are represented by executive chairpersons that report to the board and there is nothing amiss about the Caps United set-up, unless it is something personal between Phiri and Chiyangwa.
Shutting Phiri out of the PSL even after Caps United provided a letter backing him is more like denying a club owner the responsibility to be part of decision makers.
The Phiri saga is different from that of How Mine, Hwange, Chapungu, Buffaloes, Flame Lily, Whawha, Harare City or Bulawayo City and ZPC Kariba, who send appointees to the PSL.
Phiri is the co-owner of Caps United and qualifies to lead the league in terms of Article 21.2 of the PSL statutes.
“The 16 clubs of the Premier Soccer League; each 1 delegate. Delegates must be the Chairman/ Chairperson or President to the Member that they represent and be appointed or elected by the appropriate body of that Member. They must also be able to produce evidence of this upon request,” reads Article 21.2.
Instead of wasting time on the PSL, why isn’t Zifa speeding up the process of confirming the Eastern Region champions.
Masvingo United are disputing Mutare City Rovers’ promotion alleging that they used an irregularly registered player.
The PSL starts in March and when will Zifa conclude that promotional wrangle?
Another concern is that each new Zifa board that assumes office wants to amend the constitution irregularly.
Chiyangwa has been in office for a month and has set up a constitutional review committee.
My question is what’s the problem with the constitution that was approved by Fifa a few years ago?
Instead of wasting time and resources, PC must focus on development programmes and more sustainable ways of extricating Zifa from its financial quagmire.
I believe the Zifa president and his board made a big mistake by offering the Warriors the Chan prize money to share.
Maybe he thought it was incentivising the boys, but every cent counts, especially for Zifa, who are in financial doldrums.
The Zifa board seems to have forgotten that there is an upcoming Afcon match against Swaziland soon after Chan and where will they get money to prepare?
How will Zifa cover preparatory costs since they were in camp for over two weeks? They needed airfares to Rwanda as well as other allowances for the boys?
Zifa should have agreed on a sharing percentage of the $100,000 with the players instead of promising everything.
And what about money to fund youth teams? Wasn’t the money from Chan, as little as some may term it, going to cover a lot of things for Zifa?
Come on Chiyangwa and company, be serious and make real football decisions. Direct your energy on productive things instead of throwing your weight around.
Online Reporter