
Lovemore Dube
Zimbabwe Saints Football Club will hold its Annual General Meeting (AGM) this afternoon at its Bulawayo Queens Park East clubhouse.
Lloyd Munhanga, the team’s officially confirmed secretary-general at the AGM held on 15 May 2022, said in an interview on Friday that the meeting would press ahead. He said all bona fide members of the club were invited to the make-or-break meeting at which the revival of the club to play under Zifa structures will be discussed as well as the contentious clubhouse issue.
However, members who requested anonymity said they were not happy that the clubhouse revenue was not filtering through to the team. They claimed the institution has not been benefitting from the entity despite rentals of about US$1 500 per month. They argue that with a budget of US$ 2 000 a month in Division One last year, the club would not have been kicked out of the Zifa Southern Region Division One over outstanding fees.
Members had up to August last year been donating towards its day to day operations before fatigue hit them. However, one of the club trustees and former chairman Vincent Pamire said members talking about money from the club house rentals were ill informed.
“When the clubhouse was almost gone, I rescued it within my own resources. Whoever speaks about the clubhouse must speak to my lawyers and about what status he holds at the club and the amount of money that is due to me for the renovations and legal fees. Right now there are two houses for the club at Rangemore, do they know who built them from the ground, and at whose expense?” asked Pamire on Friday.
During the launch of the Adachi sponsorship in 2022, two housing stands were donated to the club, and have since had two four-roomed houses built, sources said. Asked if he would attend the meeting, Pamire said he does “not attend meetings that he is not part of”.
It has emerged that there are several sets of people who have been trustees of the club at one time or the other and were never replaced in accordance with the constitution. The Zimbabwe Saints constitution states that members stay in office for six years before being replaced at an AGM. Sources said that the Pamire, Cliff Manhungo, the late Ernest Tekere, E Bere and Never Nduru board of trustees was not elected at an AGM, with some members challenging them to produce minutes that put them into office.
There is another set of board of trustees that was voted into office in 2008 that had Munhanga, Martin Mabvira, Ishmael Kaguru, Lazarus Magwaro and the late Sakhiwe Ndlovu, which some members claim is still is bonafide. The executive had Felix Dzumbunu who was kicked out in unclear circumstances by some trustrees in favour of Kaguru, with Munhanga as secretary-general, Richard Sithole as treasurer with two committee members Witness Nkuziwalela and Gibson Homela, who was doubling up as director of football.
Fireworks are expected and police have cleared the meeting to go ahead. Expectations are that the Saints train this time around will be left on the rails and ready to play Division Two football as a start, amid interest to fund it by former players.