Drama as teams enforce Comfort as Hhohho chair
MBABANE – It is costing the Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) an arm and a leg to run both the MTN Premier League and the MTN National First Division League.
The organisation spent about E1.1 million to subsidise the budget spent on each game played under the leagues. It costs about E5 650 to host a Premier League match. For the National First Division, the costs are around E4 000.
PLE Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kenneth Makhanya explained to the teams that the PLE was spending a lot in hosting the games and that was among the reasons they wanted to have lesser teams this season.
PRun
The PLE will run leagues of 14 teams each this season. There were 16 teams in top flight football and 14 in the National First Division last year.
The Eswatini Football Association (EFA) has approved that each league will have the 14 teams in the season set to kick-off next month.
Makhanya said part of the money they spent in each game included
IGG’S PEAK – Former Eswatini Football Association (EFA) Vice President Comfort Shongwe is back in football, albeit in dramatic fashion.
The former EFA vice president was not in the spotlight since losing the race for the country’s football head honcho to Peter ‘Samora’ Simelane in June last year.
He bounces back as the new interim committee chairman elected by 25 Hhohho Regional Football teams in an urgent meeting which was held at Pigg’s Peak Club yesterday.
The meeting was called by Bulandzeni Young Aces on behalf of 45 teams, after the clubs felt like the current HRFA Executive Committee led by Chairman Nigel Shongwe was in office illegally after their term ended in July 31 this year.
Application
The teams last week filed an urgent application to the High Court through lawyer Sipho Jele from S.M Jele Attorney, seeking an order to stop the Nigel Shongwe-led executive from using the association’s funds.
The teams, through former EFA TD Fritz Seibeia, when asked which instrument was used to hold and elect the interim committee, said they wrote to both EFA and HRFA informing them that they would be electing a committee that would look at the welfare of the teams.
Some members of the teams felt that EFA would reject the committee, paying match officials, security officers, match commissioners, fumigation officers, stadium coordinators and compliance officers, among others.
He said the money paid by teams
THE INTERIM COMMITTEE:
but renowned football administrator Myengwa ‘Goje’ Sibandze said this committee would be the vehicle that they would use to communicate with EFA.
Communication
“This committee will act as our communication tool with EFA, as we can’t just send an individual to represent us there,” Sibandze said.
The chairman on the day, Doughnut Nkonyane, then asked Sibandze to be each season for hosting games was not enough, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. Premier league teams pay E30 000 each season for hosting matches, while national first the electoral officer, with the assistance of Fritz.
The teams were allowed a few minutes to nominate the candidates for seven positions. These are the chairman, vice chairman, secretary general, vice secretary, treasurer and two members.
Office
Sibandze said the interim committee would be in office for a full football season, starting in the 2022/23 season.
Worth mentioning is that EFA has given members, who include HRFA, division clubs fork out E20 000.
Makhanya said this money was not enough and a large chuck had to come from the PLE and they spent over E1 million.
“While there are match allowances for the match officials, there is also transport that has to be paid and it is counted with each kilometre. This digs down into the PLE coffers. The money paid by the teams is not enough to cater for the games and the PLE ends up spending millions in subsidising the hosting of each game,” he said.
Sponsors
Makhanya said they were currently seeking sponsors for the National First Division like in South Africa to reduce the burden from the MTN League sponsorship.
“It’s been unfortunate that for a long time the league played without fans and there was little that was received by the teams and the PLE,” he said.
Makhanya said they were hopeful that the Ingwenyama Cup would bounce back this season, while they were still in negotiations with other sponsors to take over some tournaments.
The PLE is currently operating under a loss of over E100 000, according to the financial reports. leeway to hold annual general meetings up to October this year, following disruptions in the normal football calendar.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the interim committee Shongwe thanked the teams for believing in them that they could do the job well.
Task
“We are humbled by the task bestowed on us by teams; we are promising that we will work well to defend the Constitution at all cost, but our primary goal is to develop football in the region,” Shongwe said.
HRFA Secretary General Nkosingiphile Shongwe wondered who elected the interim committee, saying that the HRFA Constitution was there to guide the teams.
No immediate comment could be sourced from EFA as Marketing and Communications Officer Muzi Radebe’s phone rang unanswered.
Worth mentioning is that the teams have filed an urgent application at the High Court of Eswatini through lawyer Sifiso Martin Jele.
In the matter, they are seeking the court to freeze the association’s bank account and be inaccessible to the Nigel Shongwe HRFA-led committee.
The HRFA also filed their responding affidavit through top lawyer Sabelo Bhembe of Bhembe Attorneys.
The matter is pending in court.