Sports Reporter
THE Sports Commission have revealed that they may be forced to take stern measures against the Zimbabwe Handball Federation if they fail to hold their elections as they have directed.
The elections were initially set for March when the Amon Madzvamuse-led interim committee’s term of office expired.
But controversy and chaos have been surrounding the elections which have been cancelled three times including in August when the handball federation had been directed by the Sports Commission to conduct the polls.
And it now appears the handball federation is now set for a collision course with the supreme sports body in the country.
In an e-mail written to Madzvamuse last week, Sports Commission’s director sport and recreation, Joseph Muchechetere, indicated that no ZHF members will be cleared to go outside the country for any of the federation’s business if the issue of elections is not fulfilled.
The ZHF are hoping to attend the International Handball Federation’s congress scheduled for the first week of November in Budapest, Hungary, as an affiliate to the latter.
“If the issue of elections is not fulfilled as discussed, no ZHF members will be cleared to go outside the country even to attend the IHF Congress,” read part of the e-mail sent to Madzvamuse by Muchechetere.
Speaking to The Herald yesterday, Muchechetere said they are concerned with the way the handball federation is conducting its business.
“The position is, as SRC we are concerned by the state of affairs of the Zimbabwe Handball Federation. The executive in office is an interim structure which should have organised an extraordinary meeting to elect a substantive executive in line with their constitution registered by the SRC.
“We had agreed with the interim committee that following the registration of their constitution they should have their elections. They asked for an extension of time for them to organise their provinces so that they have substantive provincial executive committees in place because they form the electorate, so we gave them 10 months. And following that they wrote to us that by March this year they would have sent the notices and convened the extraordinary meeting to elect a substantive executive.
“Unfortunately, instead of being focused, they ended up addressing other issues which the SRC was not interested in because we had given them enough time. Now we have heard that they have had three aborted meetings, so we have said this is not acceptable in the tenets of good governance.
“So we are saying to them just like any other association, they have to be in compliance. They will not get any services from the SRC. We are just picking the resolutions of the SRC and applying them to handball,” said Muchechetere.
Muchechetere, who is expected to have a meeting with the ZHF today, said in the event the national federation fails to fulfil the requirements from the Sports Commission, they will face disciplinary action.
“We are taking it step by step, we don’t just rush in taking stern action. They will not get services until they comply, we have not suspended them but we are saying we are advising them (to conduct their business in a proper manner). If they fail to come to meet the SRC within the given time we will recommend to the board that they face disciplinary action. So this is the last chance we are giving them,” said Muchechetere.
Last week, the Sports Commission sport development manager, Martin Dururu, said they had written to the ZHF instructing them to have their elections before November 15.
However, Madzvamuse and the ZHF secretary-general Alphios Magiya yesterday said they are still waiting for communication from the Sports Commission concerning the elections.
Madzvamuse said they are willing to hold the elections, but are waiting to get the letter from the Sports Commission just like the last time when they were ordered to conduct the elections before the end of August.