The Sunday News
WORLD football governing body Fifa has reportedly agreed to settle the Zimbabwe Football Association’s debt which has ballooned to close to $6 million.
Zifa have accumulated the debt over the past six years largely because they have struggled to generate revenue due to lack of regular funding.
The association has become debt hamstrung, a situation that has seen several creditors attaching some of the football body’s properties through the courts.
Impeccable sources at the country’s soccer governing mother body said while their debts have been giving them sleepless nights with efforts by various creditors to recover their money through the courts reaching a crescendo, Zifa would soon be getting relief from Fifa.
Although the official did not put a timeframe on when the international football body will rescue Zifa, the source said the relief was imminent.
“Fifa will be implementing a programme that will see football associations in distress getting funding. This is a worldwide programme and we (Zifa) are also going to see our debts being paid off,” said the source.
While efforts to get a comment from Zifa were fruitless, the body’s chief executive officer, Jonathan Mashingaidze told our Harare Bureau on Friday that Fifa Development officer for Southern Africa Ashford Mamelodi was expected in the country at the end of this month specifically to deal with Zifa’s debt crisis.
Mashingaidze told our sister paper The Herald that Mamelodi was due to visit them as they prepare to unveil their long term-debt servicing strategies.
“Fifa are also concerned with our plight and would want to find ways to assist us retire these debts,’’ Mashingaidze was quoted as saying.
Zifa’s mounting woes saw its president, Cuthbert Dube issue an unprecedented appeal to Zifa’s creditors to be patient.
Dube also revealed in a statement published on the Zifa website that he had been tasked by the Board to lead a team that would negotiate with creditors and also pursue the association’s own debtors in their bid to balance their books and pay off what they owed.
“While we note our creditors’ rights to payment for services rendered to the association, I would like to passionately appeal to all our stakeholders to bear with us as we continue with efforts to implement a debt-servicing and turnaround plan to cater for all those issues.
“Much as it is not a secret that Zifa has serious financial problems — with a debt of nearly $6 million — I would also like to assure all our creditors and suppliers that my Board remains committed to servicing all debts assumed under this council’s current tenure, and those inherited in March 2010.
“Crucially, the essence of that on-going dialogue is to hammer out payment plans and stave off the execution of writs, which would have meant the removal of property at Zifa House and Village.
“While we are happy to announce that the process has been encouraging and very progressive, some creditors have committed to writing off or discounting a portion of their debts with Zifa.
“Regrettably, there are some who have still maintained a confrontational stance by sustaining court cases, but we are hopeful that these on-going efforts will bring us a win-win situation,” he said in the statement.
Dube is himself owed by the mother body after advancing funds to Zifa on several occasions.
Some of the companies also owed by Zifa include Pandari Lodge, Holiday Inn, Selous Hotel, FBC and former communication manager, Nicky Dhlamimi-Moyo who was awarded $88 000 by an arbitrator after being unfairly dismissed although Zifa appealed the matter.
