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Bothwell Mahlengwe
AS always, the ZIFA president, Cuthbert Dube is defiant that he hasn’t done anything wrong. In his self-absorbed mind, the nation is actually indebted to his generosity as he has “pumped in a lot of my personal resources into the game.”

He also claims success in the five years he has been at the helm of ZIFA as “a lot of Fifa projects that have been mismanaged have taken off.”

He also claims that “we are in good books with Fifa and I even sit on one of their committees.”

That’s how delusional our beloved ZIFA president is such that he forgets that his mandate was not to “sponsor” the national game.

Neither was it to merely manage Fifa projects and create superfluous relations with his newly found “bosses.”

What Dube fails to comprehend is that he is guilty of incompetence and failure by any measure, whether by his own campaign manifestos, ZIFA constitution or the leadership qualities required of a ZIFA president.

This is not surprising, though, for a man who had to be dragged kicking and screaming out his two previous business mandates.

In his 2010 campaign manifesto, Dube promised among other things;

1. A new state-of-the-art House of ZIFA away from 53 Livingstone Avenue.

2. Strengthening of corporate governance system through training, enforcement of statutes and engagement of COMPETENT and committed staff.

3. A return to regional powerhouse status.

4. Mobilisation of sponsorship for the Association’s portfolios.

5. Hosting of CAF and FIFA competitions.

6. Regular presence at AFCON.

The 2014 campaign manifesto was premised on the request to “finish what I started.”

Unfortunately, Dr Dube, results don’t lie.

What’s on the ground speaks volume, the noise that it’s making is deafening. The new House of ZIFA that you can talk about is your place of residence where we understand ZIFA meetings and functions are now being held.

We also understand Fifa advanced ZIFA US$500,000.00 for the new offices and everyone wonders why the secretariat is still at 53 Livingstone House and all the other important decisions being made from your place of residence.

Corporate governance issues are at its worst at ZIFA.

You manipulated the constitution to give all the powers to the President and the General Secretary (ZIFA CEO) making the whole ZIFA system dysfunctional.

To make matters worse, you engaged a supposedly COMPETENT and committed staff led by the divisive and know-it-all Jonathan Mashingaidze.

And since his engagement all we have heard are unending excuses and vitriol attacks on anyone who decides to challenge his management style.

The sponsorship that you promised is nowhere to be seen and the envisaged fund-raising committee non-existent five years since your ascendance to ZIFA presidency in 2010.

You had promised hosting of FIFA and CAF competitions but the only attempt that was made was the ill-advised bid to host the 2017 AFCON which, in essence, left you, the ZIFA president, ZIFA, the Zimbabwean football fraternity and the nation at large with an egg in the face.

I can tell you that we are laughing stock at CAF offices.

Instead of turning our beloved Warriors into a powerhouse and gracing the AFCON tournaments as we did in 2004 and 2006, you have turned us into the world minnows who couldn’t advance past the first round of the preliminaries losing to little Tanzania.

Besides failing to qualify not once but thrice under your leadership, the Warriors stand dissolved at the time when other nations are competing in the 2015 AFCON finals in Equatorial Guinea and less than five months before the resumption of the 2017 AFCON qualifiers.

And you say, “I have done nothing wrong.”

Constitutionally, Dube is in violation of the following articles:

Article 2 a) — “to improve the game of football constantly . . . particularly through youth and development programmes.”

Pitifully our game has regressed big time with the Dauda saga bearing testimony of the decline. And Dr Dube, what youth and development programmes do we have to talk about?

Article 37 — 2 The President is primarily responsible for;

a) Implementing the decisions passed by the Congress and the Executive Committee (Board) through the general secretariat.

b) Ensuring the effective functioning of the bodies of ZIFA in order that they achieve the objectives described in the Statutes.

c) Supervising the work of the general secretariat.

To the contrary what we have is a dysfunctional association whose board is as good as non-existent because its powers have been usurped by a wayward and unsupervised CEO who has the blessings of the ZIFA President.

A case in point is the US$2 million dollars you are “trying to raise from certain quarters” for the forthcoming quartet of qualifiers.

The same man who could not raise just tens of thousands of dollars to ensure that we give the boys who did well at CHAN their deserved share.

Instead of following the proper channel and involve the appropriate organs in your Association you chose to go it alone with your CEO.

Where does the board member (finance) come in? When and how are you going to tap into the intellect and ideas of the Finance Standing Committee?

You also said you will be meeting with Callisto Pasuwa and Mashingaidze to plan for the qualifiers.

Where does the board member in charge of national teams come in?

Is Pasuwa now the Warriors coach?

Are the Under — 23s now the Warriors?

And you say, “I have done nothing wrong?”

Article 4 — 1 says, “ZIFA shall promote friendly relations between its Members, Clubs, Officials and Players and in society for humanitarian objectives.”

How does subverting the duties and expertise of the board members promote friendly relations among ZIFA Officials?

How does calling people ‘vultures and criminals’ promote friendly relations in the ‘society for humanitarian objectives?”

Dr Dube, you have proved to be devoid of the leadership attributes required to take our football forward.

Your character has been put to question by the infamous ‘Salarygate’.

Your trip-mates to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil left the nation with a sour taste in their mouths.

Your organisational skills have been put to question with the way the so-called ‘Asiagate’ saga was handled.

The team you put at ZIFA leaves a lot to be desired. The discord in the board, council and other ZIFA organs is a clear testimony of lack of organisational skills.

You have resorted to ‘remote-control’ type of leadership, divorcing yourself from the constituency that you are supposed to lead.

The closest the flock has been to their shepherd is the newspapers pictures.

And sadly, the shepherd cannot recognise a single of his sheep.

ZIFA’s lack of partners has proved that the man cannot foster mutually beneficial relationships with anyone.

ZIFA casts a lonely figure where its affiliates, PSL and NRSL, have been dining with many suitors. And still you say, “I have done nothing wrong?”

Almost a year into your second four-year term at the helm of ZIFA all you can claim as your success is to turn yourself into an unsolicited ZIFA sponsor, FIFA projects manager and friend of the Zurich-based football gang.

What a shame!

Bothwell Mahlengwe is a banker and former Premiership footballer and can be contacted, for comment, on the e-mail – [email protected]