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Kenneth Mhlophe

Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
HIGHLANDERS members go to the polls at the club house tomorrow morning with one of the candidates contesting the vice chairman’s post Kenneth Mhlophe urging members to vote for him saying he is the right man for the job. Three other candidates, Morden Ngwenya, Nkosinathi Ncube and Mgcini Sibhalo Mpofu are eyeing the same post while Donald Ndebele and Charles Ndlovu will seek members’ mandate to take charge of the club’s books.

In an interview yesterday, city businessman and philanthropist Mhlophe said he does not want to go overboard and blow a trumpet claiming that he will do this and that for the club but will instead simply implement the resolutions that club members have made during the club’s annual general meetings as well as what is contained in the strategic plan.

“I think we tend to forget that Highlanders has been there before us and it has had people running it. Even now there are people in office and so I don’t want to claim that I’ll single handedly go in there and change things, no, this isn’t about individuals but it’s all about team work.

“There are resolutions that haven’t been implemented that need to be put in motion so I’m going in there to work for the people so that their wishes are fulfilled,” said Mhlophe.

He said his army background taught him to make and follow decisions to their logical conclusion.
“I’m an administrator and I’ve dealt with issues of logistics so I’m the right candidate to run the team’s two commercial entities, the club house and Manwele Beer Garden. Our chairman Peter Dube is running for the Premiership presidency meaning he’ll now be running affairs of 15 more clubs.

“That’ll mean now and again he’ll be called to attend to PSL business whose headquarters by the way are in Harare but the club can’t stop going about its business because the chairman is not there like what we saw last season when meetings were continuously postponed because the quorum was not met,” said Mhlophe.

A number of Highlanders’ crucial meetings were postponed because of failure to meet the quorum especially when Dube was head of delegation for the Cosafa team in South Africa. Vice chairman Mpofu would also be tied up in Harare where he is based.
Meanwhile, Mhlophe has angrily refuted claims that he was asked by Highlanders chairman Dube to run for the vice  chairmanship, thereby making him Dube’s “man”.

“That’s really an insult to my person, I’ve heard about it too but I want to categorically state here and now that I’m my own man, at my age kuthiwe ngingumuntu wenye indoda, that’s impossible,” said Mhlophe.

He said while he was clearly and inherently not Dube’s man, he still respected him because “he’s our chairman and deserves that respect”.

The electoral committee led by board vice chairman Jonathan Moyo will present all the candidates to the members before voting takes place. Each candidate is given some few minutes to sell himself and his ideas to the electorate who, however, are not allowed to ask questions.

A candidate who will get less than 10 percent of the votes cast will not be refunded his $100 election fee.