admin
Petros Kausiyo Deputy Sports Editor
ZIFA board member Bernard Gwarada has revealed that there is a commitment by the country’s new football leadership to bring the Asiagate saga to a close and turn their full attention and limited resources to the demands of administering and developing the game.
The soccer mother body has over the last four years been seized with the seemingly never-ending Asiagate match-fixing scam which, according to the Zifa finance committee, has come at a huge financial cost.
Gwarada, one of the new brooms to have arrived on the board following the March 29 Zifa elections, has been mandated to head the finance committee that has also been tasked with working closely with the Zifa secretariat.
That committee includes business executives and bankers such as Eric Mvududu, Webster Chikengezha and Charles Mudyiwa.
Gwarada yesterday revealed that his committee had already begun putting in place measures aimed at improving the Zifa image as well as tightening financial controls at the association in order to effectively manage the football body’s limited resources.
The Harare businessman, however revealed that there was a general consensus and commitment from the board to ensure that the long-dragging Asiagate saga is brought to an end “in an amicable manner that does not bring more financial costs on the part of Zifa’’.
“We have to really close the Asiagate issue as soon as possible and all board members are in agreement with that. It’s counterproductive and we cannot continue focusing on it,” said Gwarada.
“I believe some individuals have suffered enough and humiliated so we have to find a way to close this case amicably without further costs to Zifa whether financially or legally because if you see the bill that Zifa accrued because of Asiagate you can see that it is one of the main cost centres for the association.
“It’s expensive to pay the consultants, the lawyers and the committees involved.
“So, we have to quickly find solutions that will result in an amicable end to it, a more of a win-win situation.” Gwarada also expressed concern with the polarisation in the domestic game which said had filtered down to the supporters and resulted in rival factions of supporters, a scenario he reckoned was untenable for our football.
“We need a shared vision from all stakeholders on the best practices for our football. Football knows no boundaries, it is a actually a unifier and we do not need two camps of supporters one calling themselves Friends of the Warriors and the other Zimbabwe Soccer Supporters Association because our ultimate goal is to see our football improve and our national teams achieving success on the continental and world platforms.
“We do not want to be distracted by fights in our football because that will divert us from our mandate to administer and develop football in the next four years” Gwarada said.
Gwarada, whose committee was only ratified on May 31 on the eve of Warriors African Cup of Nations clash against Tanzania, also acknowledged the administrative shortcomings at Zifa but insisted work was in progress to improve the way the game is administered at 53 Livingstone Avenue.
Zifa, Gwarada said, could ill-afford to continue a crisis management approach to the way they conduct their business.
But the former Douglas Warriors director also noted that Zifa’s operations were being hamstrung by a tough economic environment which is prevailing in the country and has also affected Premiership and lower Division clubs.
“In a real finance situation there has to be a budget and actual spending so having to rush to the Zifa president at the 11th hour is not good for business . . . it is crisis management and in such scenarios, resources can be abused or they may fall short.
“There are things that we can do even with our limited resources and there other things that would need huge financial resources but our vision is to try and turn on a new leaf in the way the association conducts its business.
“What we are also seeing in our game are ripple effects of an economy that is down and it is not just Zifa that has been affected. If you look at the Shabanie Mine for instance players are sleeping in a toilet, there have been player strikes at clubs like CAPS United.
“I think in view of the economic challenges we are faced with as country, the public should acknowledge the contribution that Zifa president Cuthbert Dube has made to the game.
“Although we may have failed to qualify he literally funded the AFCON campaign and it is no secret that Zifa coffers are empty but he funded the team’s travel to Tanzania and the return leg at home as well and I said at the weekend that we all have to play a part because one man alone cannot sustain our football.
“I would also like to thank the government for contributing the bit that they gave us. We understand that government has to contend with pressing issues for health, education and other national issues but Minister Langa managed to secure funds for our CHAN campaign which was a demonstration of government’s commitment to assisting us,’’ Gwarada said.
Online Reporter