COSAFA’S duplicity in banning Zifa from attending the
regional football governing body’s annual general meeting (AGM) set for today
has been exposed, revealing its dishonesty and vindictiveness.
Investigations by NewsDay Sport have revealed that while
Zifa is indebted to Cosafa, the two bodies reached an agreement on December 31,
2019 that Fifa would pay the Zimbabwe football mother body’s debt by the end of
this month.
But Cosafa attempted to ban Zifa from attending the AGM
when the mother body said it would move a motion to remove Philip Chiyangwa as
the head of the regional football body alleging corruption and fraud.
A defiant Zifa delegation led by its president Felton
Kamambo left the country yesterday afternoon for South Africa where they intend
to gate-crash into the meeting.
The AGM, which gathers all 14 member associations from the
region gets underway this morning at the Southern Sun OR Tambo Hotel in
Johannesburg, South Africa.
Information gathered by this publication show that on
December 18, 2019, Cosafa wrote to Zifa demanding a balance payment of US$18
250 from a US$25 000 loan that was advanced to them two years ago, failure of
which Zimbabwe would be barred from attending today’s meeting.
“We refer to the debt of US$18 250 which has been owing to
Cosafa since 2018 and has been reflected in regular statements of account sent
to the association.
“Despite ongoing correspondence and phone calls from Cosafa
to the association in an attempt to recover this amount and to ensure that the
association is in good standing, the amount remains unpaid.
“We are, therefore, requested to demand, as we hereby do,
payment of US$18 250 in full, by deadline 30th December 2019 failing which we
shall have no alternative but to invoke Article 27.6 of the Cosafa statutes.”
Zifa responded to Cosafa, informing them that they had
asked Fifa to settle the debt on their behalf since they were having problems
in transferring the money from Zimbabwe due to local monetary laws.
“We are in receipt of your demand letter on a loan you
extended to Zifa at the behest of the then Zifa president and Cosafa president
Chiyangwa.
“While it is a fact that this is an inherited bill, the
association remain committed to clear (sic) it at the most opportune time.
“Previous joint efforts to have the money from Zimbabwe
failed to yield any joy after the local Reserve Bank refused to sanction the
payment and such was communicated to your office.
“You will, however, note [that] we have through our Cosafa
prize money paid off part of the US$25 000 loan hence the reason the bill now
stands at US$18 250.
“This letter seeks to inform your office that we have now
requested for Fifa to deduct from our grant pencilled for January 2020 the
amount due to you of US$18 250 and pay the same directly to Cosafa so that this
matter is settled. We hope this request will meet your favourable consideration.”
In the letter, Zifa said they were worried about Cosafa’s
tone, which already inferred that they were plotting punitive measures, which
includes membership suspension.
Zifa argued they previously owed Cosafa R800 000 but were
never threatened with suspension as the money would be deducted from prize
monies each time Zimbabwe qualified for such money.
“It is [a] common secret that we are not in good books with
the current Cosafa president (Chiyangwa) and we begin to wonder if the
suggested punitive measures and deadlines are really divorced from our issues
with Chiyangwa.
“This is so, especially when one considers that the loan
was taken when Chiyangwa was Zifa president but no undue pressure was exerted
on his administration to repay before he left office.
“One wonders whether the threat to suspend, if we do not
settle by 31 December 2019, is not linked to the upcoming Cosafa AGM, where
Zifa has requested that the Cosafa president’s interferences with our football
be included in the agenda. We sincerely hope this is not another of the Cosafa
president’s attempts to take away our voice.”
On the same day, Zifa wrote to Fifa requesting them to
deduct the money from a grant that the local association receives annually.
Fifa, through its senior development manager Africa and
Caribbean Region Subdivision member associations Solomon Mudege on December 31,
2019 responded: “We have taken note of Zifa’s request for Fifa to pay US$18 250
to Cosafa. This funds transfer would be deducted from Zifa’s operational costs
funding.
“In Cosafa’s letter to Zifa, a deadline of 30 December 2019
is indicated. However, I assume that both Zifa and Cosafa will wait for Fifa’s
response before any further action is taken.”
On January 9, Fifa confirmed that they would pay Zifa’s
debt. The confirmation email was sent to both Zifa general
secretary Joseph Mamutse and Cosafa secretary general, Sue Destombes.
“We have considered Zifa’s request and we can assist on an
exceptional basis. Cosafa should send us an invoice for US$18 250,” Fifa wrote.
“The invoice should be addressed to Fifa (Attention:
Solomon Mudege). The funds will be transferred to Cosafa by the end of January
2020.” The following day, Destombes acknowledged receipt of the
email.
“Thank you Solomon, this is much appreciated and our
invoice will be sent to you on Monday 13th January for processing,” she
responded.
Investigations show that Cosafa’s accounting consultant,
Tanya Reed, of Bifinancial, on January 13, 2019, sent the invoice to Fifa, and
the world football governing body acknowledged receipt on January 15, 2019.
“I would like to confirm that the invoice has been
requested for payment. Cosafa should receive the funds by end of January,”
wrote Mudege, and Destombes responded: “Many thanks indeed Solomon.”
Last week, Destombes wrote to Mamutse inviting Zifa to
attend the AGM since there was an agreed plan to settle the debt.
“Cosafa will send the ticket for president Kamambo and
arrange his accommodation which will be on our account.
“Kindly advise whether we should reserve accommodation for
Mr Philemon Machana (Zifa vice-president) and yourself at the same hotel, which
will be for Zifa account (sic). A copy of the AGM agenda and the financial
statements will be sent,” read part of an email by Destombes.
The following day, Zifa received a copy of the agenda and
the financial statements from Cosafa. Curiously, Zifa only received this on the deadline day for
them to make their proposals, submissions and questions for consideration and
actioning during the meeting.
Zifa wrote back instantly, with Mamutse questioning a
number of issues in the financials which he proposed to be included on the
agenda. He queried the huge amounts of money that had been given to Chiyangwa
as allowances last year, amounting to almost R1 million.
The allowances to Chiyangwa, and other Cosafa executive
committee members, which amounted to over R1,5 million, were paid at a time the
body made a R2 million loss.
Zifa also insisted that their proposal to have Chiyangwa
dismissed as president of Cosafa be included as an issue for consideration on
the agenda at the general assembly, “on the basis of the transgressions
committed by him in destabilising the due administration of football in
Zimbabwe”.
But on Monday morning, Cosafa sought to ban Zifa, on the
pretext that they were not in good standing due to non-payment of the debt.
Destombes said she had been advised by the body’s emergency
committee, but Zifa shot back saying such a committee does not exist in the
Cosafa constitution.
Zifa wrote to Cosafa last Friday but were told on Monday
this week that they could not attend the AGM, meaning that the so-called
emergency committee had met on a weekend, also a highly irregular occurrence.
Relations between Zifa and Chiyangwa are at an all time
low, with Kamambo accusing his predecessor of stalling the game’s progress in
the country through continued interference and underhand dealings.
Zifa has also reported the flamboyant businessman to the
police on several fraud and corruption allegations, including withdrawing US$30
000 from the association’s bank account months after he had ceased to be an
official. He also allegedly used Zifa’s money to fund his lavish birthday party
in 2017 which had Fifa president Gianni Infantino as a guest. Newsday
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