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Sports Reporter
ZIFA president Felton Kamambo and his crew will meet FIFA officials, on the sidelines of the world football governing body’s Congress in Paris, France, this week, to discuss issues related to dissolving the debt at the association.

Kamambo left Harare yesterday evening in the company of ZIFA board member, in charge of finance, Philemon Machana while association chief executive, Joseph Mamutse, had travelled earlier in the day.

The 69th FIFA Congress is set for tomorrow where Gianni Infantino, the current leader of world football, will be retained unchallenged.

The Swiss lawyer has proved a very popular choice since replacing the disgraced Sepp Blatter who was forced to leave his post under the weight of corruption.

ZIFA officials had planned to meet Infantino to discuss, among other things, the debt which continues to weigh down heavily on the organisation.

But the FIFA secretary-general, Fatma Samoura, advised the ZIFA leaders that they have organised a meeting with the people who take care of such issues since the dissolution of the debt was a very important issue.

“We refer to your Ietter dated 24 April 2019, in which you requested a meeting between the FIFA President and the President of the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA), to discuss ZIFA’s debt servicing strategy,’’ Samoura wrote.

“The FIFA president will be pleased to meet with the ZIFA president given that, since his election, he (Kamambo) has not paid an official visit to the FIFA Home of Football.

“However, due to the nature of the subject, we believe that it would be more appropriate for him to meet with the FIFA administration.

“In this respect, we are pleased to inform you that the FIFA administration, namely the Member Associations Division and the Member Associations Governance Services department, are available to meet with the ZIFA president on the margins of the FIFA Congress in Paris, France, to discuss this matter in detail.

“Our competent division will contact you to arrange the date and time of the meeting. We thank you for taking note of the above.’’

Kamambo told The Herald yesterday that their trip to France was a working visit.

“There is a lot that has to be sorted out as we battle to stabilise our ship and this is a good opportunity for us to get in touch with those who matter and who can help us fulfil our goals,’’ he said.

“Resolving the issues that have been derailing ZIFA isn’t just an overnight event but a process and we are happy that we remain in the right direction.’’