Zifa councillors term of office puzzle

24 Oct, 2021 - 00:10 0 Views

The Sunday News

Simba Jemwa, Sports Correspondent
AS the Zimbabwe Football Association elections beckon, it has dawned on the football fraternity that the assembly has only seven days left in office which could precipitate a power vacuum.

This has come to light as the Zifa election season kicks in, and conversations have begun to take place about the constitution and among key issues is its alleged continual abuse by successive boards regarding the cessation of their terms of office as well the exact timing of the board elections.

But while pundits believe the Zifa Council and the board must push the election dates to March 2022, just like what happened when Philip Chiyangwa and his board stayed on for another eight months after the expected end of their tenure, the council itself will not be in office after October 31, if the Constitution is to be followed, experts said.

According to Article 10 of the Constitution, Area Zones must have held their elections by the end of October preceding the Zifa board election year or cease to be members of the Zifa council. Article 10 of the Zifa Constitution spells the statutes governing members or affiliates and their status in the Council. It also spells out the statues that govern the election of councilors.

In an interview last week, a lawyer who refused to be named for professional reasons confirmed that at the conclusion of their term as prescribed in the Zifa statutes, the council will cease to hold a mandate and elections must be held. The lawyer also said the same was true for the board itself.

“As things stand, board elections are due at Zifa next year and the electorate comprises councilors who must themselves be elected into office be it in area Zones or provincial structures.  If Area Zones and other such affiliates or members do not hold their elections by the end of October it means the incumbent councilors’ mandates will cease,” he added.

With seven days to go before their mandate is up, it does not seem likely that Zifa will be able to organise and hold the elections for its affiliates or members. The national football association has also not been able to hold its Annual

General Meeting due to Covid-19 concerns and the blanket ban on gatherings that was effective in the country since end of March last year.

The under fire Zifa board has been dousing fires ignited by speculation of a March 2022 elective congress to elect new board members. However, Zifa has insisted that the elective congress will be only be held in December 2022.

Zifa’s communications boss, Xolisani Gwesela is on record saying: “Zifa wishes to clarify some misinformation being peddled in some social media circles which suggests that the elective congress of Zifa is in March 2022. This position is misleading and false as the next Zifa elections are to be held in December 2022 after the full four (4) year duration of the current office bearers as is dictated in our statutes regarding terms and duration of office bearers.”

There have also been reports that the Zifa AGM will be held in December this year, but efforts to get a comment from Gwesela were in vain. @simbajemwa

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