Zifa to consult on elections
THE Zifa Normalisation Committee (NC) will soon engage football stakeholders throughout the country to discuss the establishment of a new constitution, a process which will determine dates for elections to usher in a new substantive leadership.
The Lincoln Mutasa-led NC came into force in July last year following the lifting of a Fifa ban in February 2022 over government interference in football matters.
In 2021, government, through the Sport and Recreation Commission, dissolved the Felton Kamambo-led Zifa board over a litany of allegations, which did not go down well with Fifa.
In a statement, the NC said they are seized with standardising the constitution and once that is done, they will be ready for the eagerlyawaited elections.
“The time frame will be determined by how quickly the different organs that make up our football pyramid/electoral assembly are able to regularise themselves to meet the demands of our constitution. This process is an important step of the normalisation process and cannot be sacrificed for expedience. It must be done thoughtfully, thoroughly and efficiently. The national consultative process has been designed to kick-start the process,” Zifa said.
The statement also reads: “The Normalisation Committee is presently seized with regularising the Zifa constitution, which is the first step towards normalising the Zifa assembly — which will lead to the establishment of the electoral committee and ultimately elections throughout the footballing pyramid. Once this process has been concluded, elections will be held to deliver a Zifa Assembly we can all be proud of.”
The NC last week appointed FC Platinum coach Norman Mapeza to take charge of the Warriors for a four-team tournament to be held in Malawi, which will also involve Zambia, Kenya and Zambia.
Mapeza will be assisted by Ngezi Platinum Stars coach Takesure Chiragwi.
Zifa also appointed Simon Marange as Under-20 Young Warriors’ coach. Zifa have also indicated that they are dealing with technical development issues as a matter of urgency.
“Other equally important issues that national consultations will deal with are technical development — from grassroots to our national team, for both men and women, as well as discussing ways in which we can commercialise and professionalise the game both on and off the field to meet the demands of modern football. The NC will also be making presentations on and discussing club licensing and Fifa Connect,” Zifa said.
Fifa Connect, according to the international football governing body, “helps member associations register all their stakeholders in a systematic way and keep track of players, coaches and referees — wherever they are in the world. The Connect programme provides a unique Fifa ID code for every individual who has a role in the football organisation. This code is like a digital football passport number and has the information of the history of each stakeholder.”