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Trevor Carelse Juul

Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Sports Reporter
ASPIRING Zifa presidential candidate Trevor David Carelse-Juul is not a holder of a Zimbabwean passport and only acquired a local national identity card in 1992.

Carelse-Juul, who was Zifa chairman from 1992 until his suspension by the Sports and Recreation Commission in 1993, actually submitted an old, expired passport to the Zifa electoral committee.

“Those passports (one submitted by Carelse-Juul) expired many years ago. We don’t even have them in our system anymore because they were phased out,” said an official from the national registry office.

Earlier on, investigations had revealed that the South African-based businessman, who was born at Mater Dei Hospital in Bulawayo, acquired his national identity card on January 31, 1992 in Harare.

It was also during this period that he added Carelse through a notorial deed application to his original Trevor David Juul so that his surname is double barrelled.

Questions now abound on what form of identification Carelse-Juul had been using prior to his acquisition of a Zimbabwean identity card in 1992.

He is also a holder of a foreign passport and has been coming into the country as a foreign visitor.

Carelse-Juul, who is seeking the top Zifa post during the election on December 5 together with front runner Phillip Chiyangwa, fireband administrator Leslie Gwindi and retired footballer James Takavada, had his initial nomination papers rejected by the electoral committee before he resubmitted them on Tuesday.

According to the declaration by candidates on Page 5 of the forms they completed, it says a candidate must have been ordinarily resident in Zimbabwe for a period of not less than five years during a period of 20 years immediately preceding the date of his nomination.

However, it has since emerged that the businessman, who has not been in the country since the opening of the nomination process, submitted a photocopy of the expired passport page and also did not submit an original copy of the police clearance.

“His passport was needed as proof that he meets the five-year residence criteria.

“The issue of citizenship is not necessary here; it’s common knowledge that he is not based in Zimbabwe, hence the passport request,” said an electoral committee source.

“The finger prints were taken in South Africa and we wonder whether we now have an extension of the ZRP in South Africa.”

Carelse-Juul’s agent Stanely Makombe last night said they would not respond to what he called restaurant talk.

“When they are saying we presented an expired passport, what do they mean? That is a case where we have people that always want to create issues.

“We submitted to the Zifa office, which will then forward the documents to the electoral committee; and to the best of my knowledge that committee has not met. I find it misplaced that they start commenting outside the committee.
“We wonder why they are pronouncing the verdict now, and for that we are not going to legitimise those claims by commenting,” said Makombe.

The electoral committee, which is headed by retired judge Justice Selo Nare, meets in the capital tomorrow to deliberate on the candidatures of Carelse-Juul and former Warriors’ player Edzai Kasinauyo, another candidate based in South Africa.

The final list of eligible candidates will be released on November 15.