Dingilizwe Ntuli Sports Editor
ZIFA’s High Court case in which the association is seeking placement under sequestration will be heard today in Harare after it was struck off the roll last week by Justice Ester Muremba on the basis of inadequacies linked to its bid to have the matter heard.
Zifa is burdened by a debt of just over $6 million and its council voted to dissolve the association on June 4 and form a new association, the National Football Association of Zimbabwe (Nafaz) to start on a clean slate.
However, the dissolution was met with resistance by Zifa creditors, some football stakeholders as well as the Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC), which declared that the dissolution was null and void, as proper procedure was not followed.
Although the Nafaz leadership headed by president Philip Chiyangwa argued that everything was done above board and that Zifa was dead, they were forced to make a U-turn and admit that there were irregularities in the way they sought to liquidate the debt-ridden association.
A meeting has been scheduled for this Saturday at which the dissolution of Zifa would be discussed, but some councillors have raised concerns that proper procedure had still not been followed as there is no proper notice of the meeting and neither has an agenda been circulated.
“If the meeting goes ahead, whatever is decided will be null and void because there is no notice or agenda. The agenda must be circulated with just one item – dissolution. Some councillors are being phoned about the meeting and others are reading about it in newspapers,” said one councillor.
“Dissolution should be procedural and elections should be held for any new organisation that will be formed. Stakeholders must be fully engaged.”
The councillor also referred to an April 21, 2016, letter written to Zifa president Philip Chiyangwa and signed by Fifa director of legal affairs Marco Villiger and Fifa head of corporate legal Oliver Jaberg titled “Your request regarding the liquidation of the Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa) and the establishment of the Football Association of Zimbabwe (FAZI)”.
The letter says liquidation of Zifa seems permissible and should be governed by the terms of its statutes regarding its dissolution as well as in accordance with the terms of the applicable laws of Zimbabwe to allow for the establishment of a new football association that must have the capacity to sue and be sued in its own name and have a constitution which governs its conduct.
Fifa emphasised that elections must be held for the new association. “We would like to highlight that the establishment of this new association is a completely separate process, which means that initial elections will have to take place for all the necessary positions and bodies of the new football association,” reads the April 21 letter.
“Furthermore, we highly recommend ensuring that the winding up process of Zifa is properly observed and adhered to by all officers and persons associated with and employed by Zifa. It is important that all parties involved in the winding up of Zifa comply with the requirements according to the applicable laws and that the respective process is transparent and engages the relevant stakeholders who would be affected by the dissolution of Zifa,” reads the letter.