The FIFA-appointed ZIFA Normalisation Committee says it has completed interviews for a new chief executive officer (CEO).
ZIFA has been without a substantive CEO ever since the Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) suspended Joseph Mamutse in 2021.
Mamutse was later reinstated but he never resumed his duties after he sided with the Felton Kamambo-led board which was suspended by the SRC in November 2021. His ZIFA contract lapsed on 31 August.
Speaking to The Sunday Mail, ZIFA Normalisation Committee chairperson, Lincoln Mutasa, said they expect the new ZIFA CEO to assume duties within the next two weeks. He said:
Yes, we have been conducting interviews this week (last week). We shortlisted some names and then we invited people for the interviews.
After the interviews, we will now look at the results and if it is a tight race, we will go back to the candidates and ask those topping the list to come back and make some presentations, and we hope that next week (this week) we can be able to sit down with the successful candidate and table our offer and negotiate the package.
It is not always that the successful candidate will accept the offer, but we hope he or she will accept what we will table. In the event that there is no agreement, we then go to the next successful one.
Initially, ZIFA had hoped to have the CEO in office by 01 October but the Committee was distracted with arranging matches for the Warriors and Mighty Warriors.
The Warriors travelled to Botswana to play a friendly match against the host nation on 30 September, while the Mighty Warriors are in South Africa for the 2023 COSAFA Women’s Championship.
Mutasa declined to reveal names of those who had been shortlisted for the role but The Sunday Mail cited sources as saying the Normalisation Committee has settled for Owen Mugwagwa, Ngezi Platinum Stars’ Yvonne Mapika Manwa, Liberty Maidza and Violet Njubane of Premiership newboys Sheasham.
Njubane is believed to be the front-runner as she reportedly has the backing of FIFA head of development programmes Solomon Mudege.
If she lands the post, she will be the second female ZIFA chief executive officer after Henrietta Rushwaya.
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