Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
FORMER Zifa board member Edzai Kasinauyo will challenge his 10-year ban from football, as he feels the process was flawed. Kasinauyo, voted into the Zifa board on December 5, 2015 and suspended in March, was alleged to have been part of a syndicate planning on fixing the Warriors’ 2017 African Cup of Nations qualifier against Swaziland in March and handed a 10-year ban last Saturday.
Before dissolving Zifa at an extraordinary general meeting that led to the birth of the National Football Association of Zimbabwe (Nafaz), the association’s president Philip Chiyangwa said Kasinauyo and ex-Warriors coach Ian Gorowa will serve 10-year bans for their alleged involvement in match-fixing.
The pair of the former association’s chief executive officer Henrietta Rushwaya and controversial football administrator Jonathan Musavengana were handed life bans, while ex-Warriors assistant coach Nation Dube was handed a five-year ban.
Chiyangwa and acting general secretary Joseph Mamutse signed the notice that sealed the quintet’s fate but exonerated football agent Kudzi Shabba.
“The statement is clear. There is no explanation to make here; we have banned those individuals for their role in Limpopogate. We are moving forward, we don’t want these things of match fixing to continue recurring in our football,” Chiyangwa said after the bans.
However, Kasinauyo feels his constitutional rights to a fair trial were infringed as he was never called for a hearing.
“Surely, as a citizen of Zimbabwe, who abides and is protected by the constitution of the country, if I feel my rights have been infringed, it’s only logical that I act within the confines of the law. Proper procedures were not followed and they’re aware of that. I wouldn’t want to say much as I’m still consulting my advisors,” said Kasinauyo.
The former national team midfielder’s lawyer Harrison Nkomo, who is yet to be served with an official letter by Zifa informing him about his client’s ban, said: “Kasinauyo will soon issue a statement on what course of action he will be taking and how he feels about the whole matter.”
There are also indications that Dube and Gorowa will also challenge their bans.
Legal experts said Zifa had walked into a legal booby trap by suspending the quintet without calling them for hearings.
“The major error that Zifa made was its failure to call the accused persons for hearings. Every citizen of the land has a constitutional right of a free trial. Even if one is caught red-handed committing a crime, they’re taken to the courts where they’re asked to plead.
“If they plead guilty, they receive their sentence, but if they plead not guilty, then they go for trial. In the matter you’re referring to, these people’s source of livelihoods have been affected and with the laws of the land taking precedence to those of the association, they were supposed to be heard before a verdict was reached,” said one lawyer.
Another legal expert said: “Since they say Zifa is no more, the aggrieved can argue that they were banned by a non-existent organisation and the sentences fall away. The other thing is where do they appeal if they want to since Zifa is no-more? Will they get fair hearings at the new association, which has the same people that failed to give them a trial?”
Chiyangwa told Chronicle Sport last week that the charges of match-fixing remain valid, arguing that the wrong was committed against the sport of football and not Zifa.