Secret meeting backs Cuthbert Dube as Zifa boss

From Lovemore Dube in BULAWAYO
ZIFA president Cuthbert Dube has received the backing of all the four regions after a secret meeting by the regional chairmen in Harare on Saturday. The regional bosses picked up US$200 each, for attending the meeting, where Patrick Hokonya and Omega Sibanda emerged as candidates for the Zifa vice presidency.
Dube already has the backing of virtually all the provincial leaders.

The Zifa boss was not picking up his calls when The Chronicle tried to contact him yesterday.
At the secret meeting in the capital, all four regions — Central, Eastern, Northern and Southern — endorsed Dube as their candidate for Zifa board and assembly president.

“We all agreed that Dube will be our board president candidate. We spoke in unison as candidates that he should be given another term to sort out Zimbabwe football,” a source told Chronicle.

“Dube said he would pick up his nomination papers towards the close of registration as doing so early could give his opponents an opportunity to decampaign him.

“As you are aware he has taken a lot of flak of late pertaining to companies outside football that he is involved with.”
Festus Kamambo, the Central Region boss, confirmed attending the Harare meeting.

His Southern Region counterpart Musa Mandaza, who had earlier in the day said he was in Bulawayo despite sources seeing him in Harare, was no longer picking up his mobile.

“You know how it is like during election time. We met and as the Central and Southern Regions we will have to finalise who we will back at the elections for the other posts.

“That will be done on Tuesday and there after we will come up with a position,” said Kamambo.
“It was agreed that we resolve the issue to balance off as we cannot have Harare running the whole show,” said Kamambo.
Asked whether the four regions would give other names in the Zifa presidential race an audience similar to the one held in Harare on Saturday, Kamambo said for the game’s sake they would have to.

Leslie Gwindi, Rafik Khan and Farai Jere’s names have been mentioned in the past as likely candidates to run for Zifa’s hottest office.
“This is election time, everyone who is contesting should be given an audience to sell his manifesto.

“I think we would as the regions be available for those meetings all in the name of protecting the integrity of the game and that of ourselves,” said the Central Region boss.

He said the US$200 allowances they received should not be perceived as vote buying.
“We took those as our normal sitting allowances. That is what we get in the regions after our meetings. We would not be so cheap as to sell the game for that little, even US$5000 or any amount would not be worth soiling one’s name for.

“There is life outside football,’ said Kamambo.
Last week Hokonya, whose name popped up after the Harare meeting, appeared to rule himself out of an immediate return to the football administration.

“Only a foolish fly follows a corpse to the grave,” he wrote on his Facebook page just after the Zifa Southern Region elections had been concluded.
“Zifa 2014 elections not worth it.”

Mandaza triumphed in the elections to bounce back as Zifa Southern Region boss.
But the losing candidate Moyo described the elections as a farce.

He said he was not happy with change of delegates to vote and that some known sympathisers of certain camps had voted despite not having identity cards as was the requirement.

Moyo questioned why returning officer Ralph Maganga was seen with delegates at a hotel 220km from Bulawayo who were coming to vote.
Maganga, the Zifa lawyer, was appointed to supervise the elections by the Zifa board.

“I have lost but the truth of the matter is that the elections were just a big farce, how do you have people with no identity cards voting?
“We also know that there was a planning meeting held at Halfway Hotel involving some members of the Matabeleland North executive and clubs and Maganga,” fumed Moyo.

Maganga confirmed meeting the delegates at the hotel.
“Yes I met with the guys at the place you are mentioning but we were not strategising at all,” said Maganga.
Maganga disassociated himself to reports that US$45 000 had been set aside for delegates who would vote in national elections.

Reports indicate that some councillors have benefited from the US$45 000 booty to entice them to deliver the right presidential vote.
“People will always talk but I know nothing about the money,” said Maganga.