Football Group "The Candidate" Contests ZIFA's Plan To Hold AGM With Defunct Regional Affiliates

A group calling itself “The Candidate”, comprising “progressive football individuals”, is challenging the decision by the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) Normalisation Committee to hold an elective Annual General Meeting (AGM) with the current regional affiliates whose term of office has allegedly expired.

In a letter dated August 21, 2024, addressed to ZIFA Normalisation Committee Chairperson Lincoln Mutasa, The Candidate’s Chairperson Rtd Major Special Matarirano said the regional bodies should be replaced by normalization committees before the AGM is held. He wrote:

The recent call and announcement of the intention for the ZIFA AGM have prompted our assembly to question the sincerity of the NC in changing the fortunes of football in Zimbabwe for the good.

On 10 August 2024, the ZIFA General Secretary, Yvonne Manwa published a letter to several defunct functionaries whose mandate ceased years ago, inviting them to attend a voting AGM in October 2024.

It should be made known to the NC that the current regional bodies, who in the Manwa invitation letters, were to constitute 16 members from the 4 regions in the 60 purported ZIFA members, are out of their mandate and by now were supposed to have been normalised in the same way the Felton Kamambo led ZIFA board was replaced by the NC upon the lifting of sanctions on Zimbabwe football in 2022.

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This was supposed to be the issue, and it remains pertinent as a gap to be quickly filled before any AGM can be called for.

In a notice dated August 10, and released by chief executive Yvonne Mapika Manwa, ZIFA set October 18 as the date of the annual meeting in Harare. She wrote:

According to Article 24, the members exercise their voting rights through their official delegates, who will also take part in debates of the AGM.

Each official delegate has a single vote and may not represent more than one member.

Also present will be the ZIFA Normalisation Committee members, secretariat staff, Sports and Recreation Commission representative, Zimbabwe Olympic Committee representative and Auditors representatives.

Each member is humbly requested to submit names and passport-size photos of their delegates to the secretariat on or before the 31st of August 2024.

Meanwhile, according to ZBC, the ZIFA Executive Committee elections are set to be held on the 11th of January 2025 under a new constitution.

The report says ZIFA held an Extraordinary General Meeting on Saturday, with the Confederation of African Football (CAF), FIFA, and the Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) all represented at the EGM.

More: Pindula News