Petros Kausiyo

NINE months after they had literally been excluded from reform processes being undertaken in local football, the Premier Soccer League and regional bodies get a chance to meet with FIFA today to try and help shape the direction the domestic game should take.

This comes as PSL clubs and the four regions have been invited to meet with the visiting FIFA/CAF delegation in Harare today for a crunch indaba.

Since the appointment of the Normalisation Committee to run ZIFA affairs in July last year, Lincoln Mutasa and his crew had, somehow, failed to recognise the significance of the association members who include the elite clubs and the regions who are in charge of the second tier Division One sides.

But as the FIFA delegates seek to expedite the constitutional amendment process and strengthen the governance statutes which are the bedrock on which future ZIFA elections will be held, they sought to meet with the Premiership and Division One clubs and their leadership.

ZIFA chief executive Yvone Manwa confirmed the indaba in the letters of invitation sent to the PSL and the regions.

Manwa had earlier also spoken about part of the mission that the delegation led by FIFA head of development programmes in Africa Solomon Mudege, is undertaking in Harare.

The other members of the delegation are; Ahmed Harraz, senior Member Association Governance Services Manager at FIFA, Walter Nyamilandu Manda – FIFA Consultant (Former president of the Football Association of Malawi), the CAF Director of Member Associations, Sarah Mukuna and Lyrique Duplessis – a FIFA legal consultant

“The FIFA/CAF delegation arrived in Zimbabwe on Friday 5 April and will depart Harare on Thursday 11 April 2024. 

“The main aim of the mission is to assist the ZIFA Normalisation Committee in revising the ZIFA statutes. They will also be assisting with practical guidance on how the statutes revision meetings should be conducted.

“Apart from the ZIFA Normalisation Committee and CEO, the FIFA/CAF delegation will be engaging with Premier Soccer League clubs together with their chairman and CEO,’’ Manwa said.

FIFA, through Nyamilandu have reportedly drawn a blueprint for the refurbishment of the ZIFA Village in Mt Hampden.

“The delegation has already visited ZIFA Village in Mt Hampden to meet potential contractors for the refurbishment of the facility.’’.

In her correspondence to the PSL, Manwa indicated that the FIFA delegation would also want to get an understanding of the governance structure at each of the clubs with through presentation of their respective statutes and set-up.

“The Zimbabwe Football Association hereby invites the following to a FIFA/CAF/ZIFA NC meeting which shall be held on Wednesday the 10th of April 2024;

 “All clubs are requested to submit the following through the office of the ZIFA General Secretary before end of day on Monday the 8th of April 2024; a) Club constitution b) Names of Executive Committee Members c) Executive Committee’s mandate and duration.

“Please be advised that all clubs are to cater for their transport and accommodation,’’ wrote Manwa.

The move by the world body’s delegates to include the PSL and the regions, comes as a welcome move after the Normalisation Committee seem to have veered off track when placing their faith and trust in a parallel ZIFA structure that is being fronted by a cabal of former administrators led by Francis Zimunya, trading as Lifelong Footballers Association of Zimbabwe.  

The Lifelong Footballers Association of Zimbabwe have in the last few months been on a countrywide drive to set up a potential new ZIFA assembly from district, area zone and provincial levels.

They have surprisingly been given the mandate by the Normalisation Committee to distribute FIFA equipment to non-ZIFA members across the country under the guise of taking football to the grassroots.

But with FIFA and CAF available to mediate, the PSL and the regions have a massive chance today to seek clarification from the Normalisation Committee on a number of burning questions which include:

Why ZIFA still do not have key sub-committee such as the disciplinary, appeal, ethics and governance 

Why the Normalisation committee has been on a drive to include the Footballers and the Coaches Union as members of ZIFA when it was on the advice of FIFA that the same labour bodies were removed from Congress

Why ZIFA still do not have Club Licensing regulations that are specific to Zimbabwe’s situation as ZIFA have only named a First Instance Body that has dealt with stadium inspections only

Why there is still no ZIFA reform roadmap two months before the expiry of the Normalisation Committee’s initial mandate

The indaba also provides the top clubs a platform to get an insight into whether the spirit of the FIFA letter that ushered in the Normalisation Committee, still obtains and whether Zimbabwe will not slide into another governance crisis similar to the one which invited the Sports and Recreation Commission sanctions.

As they take a look into the g0vernance structure of the clubs, it would also be a key issue of interest for the PSL governors and their Division One counterparts to get an update on what has stalled the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between ZIFA and the SRC and ensure all parties are on the same page n the long overdue reform process of the Zimbabwe game.