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Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Sports Reporter
TODAY was supposed to be a big day for Zimbabwean football; a day that could have seen Felton Kamambo being stripped of his Zifa presidency, while other members of his executive were also set to lose their mandate.

This was the day that 27 members of Zifa had set aside for an extraordinary general congress after getting fed up by the way the executive committee was running (down) football in the country.

The most critical item on the agenda of the extraordinary congress was to revoke the mandate of one or all members of the Zifa executive committee in line with the association’s constitution.

Quite unsurprisingly, the Zifa executive committee, which was suspended by the Sports and Recreation Commission on November 16 last year, was unyielding in its desire to make sure today’s gathering doesn’t see the light of day.

They resorted to threats after threats as if they had committed a heinous crime yet they were just following what is in the constitution.

The executive committee claimed, through many unsigned media statements, that it had never refused to heed the call by the delegates, which was quite contrary to what Kamambo wrote to delegates where he even seemed to threaten them with unspecified action.

“I am receiving calls from several councillors asking if as the Zifa board we are aware or have sanctioned any petition to call for a Zifa EGM to discuss, among many, the so called impasse between Zifa and SRC.

The said councillors are saying they are being asked to sign a document without an agenda to support this dangerous initiative,” said Kamambo.

“Kindly note that as Zifa president and board, we are not aware and have not sanctioned any such document and its intentions.

You are all aware that our dispute with SRC has been escalated to Fifa and Administrative Court.

Anyone signing any documentation ostensibly on the misunderstanding that it originates or has the support of the board must therefore do so at their own risk,” he wrote.

It is clear that Kamambo literally turned down the request to call for an extraordinary congress as provided for in Article 28 of the Zifa constitution, leaving the delegates with no option, but to invoke part two of the same article which empowers them to call for the congress if they don’t receive any joy from the executive.

The delegates were in constant communication with Fifa, which didn’t object to the delegates’ position.

All seemed to be on course until Thursday when Fifa chief member association officer Kenny Jean-Marie wrote to suspended Zifa chief executive officer Joseph Mamutse advising him that the said extraordinary congress should be legally upright, meaning the delegates must give the Zifa executive committee the aforesaid three months to respond.

Perhaps what the rebel councillors’ spokesperson Martin Kweza, who seems to be the one communicating with Fifa, ought to have favoured Fifa with the Kamambo letter to prove that the Article 28 route had hit a brick wall hence the next plan of action, which is Article 28.2.

“Accordingly, we are of the opinion that Zifa’s executive committee must be given the time foreseen in the Zifa statutes to convene the requested extraordinary congress (that is up to 3 April 2022) before the Zifa members can lawfully convene it themselves.

In other words, we consider that the relevant Zifa members are not entitled to convene the extraordinary congress themselves on 29 January as this would contravene the above-mentioned statutes.

Therefore, we request you to inform the said Zifa members and the executive committee about the foregoing so as that the relevant measures can be taken on both sides,” reads part of Jean-Marie letter to Mamutse.

There were celebrations from those fighting in the suspended Zifa executive committee’s corner, which to some was a long-awaited victory.

It was a development that they had always waited for, a day that their detractors would be shamed, a day that those who had vilified them would have egg on their faces, while tails will be firmly tucked between their legs.

Unbeknown to them, there is absolutely nothing to celebrate here.

This is just a delayed hanging process. Death is so imminent for this Zifa executive committee and if they were genuine football people, they would just call it quits.

What Jean-Marie’s letter confirms is that the EGM has just been confirmed.

The congress will be held on or earlier than April 3 and if the executive committee decides not to call for the congress, the delegates will simply invoke Article 28.2. There is no going back now.

Another route, which unfortunately, will be very embarrassing for the suspended Zifa executive committee will be for one more member to distance himself from all this chaos in the same manner Sugar Chagonda, Farai Jere and Barbra Chikosi did long back.

Once that happens, it will leave only three members and in terms of Article 32.10 of the Zifa constitution, the three will not be able to form a quorum, thus allowing the general secretary or anyone acting on his behalf to call for elections within two months.