Outspoken Norton Member of Parliament, Temba Mliswa has threatened to effect citizen arrest on Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) officials who travelled to Egypt for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals for allegedly abusing funds meant for the national soccer team.
The Zimbabwe men’s football team is currently on duty in Egypt for the continent’s bi-annual football showcase but their participation in the tournament has been marred by setbacks including threats to boycott matches by players over unpaid allowances and misuse of funds by the ZIFA leadership among others.
Meanwhile, Mliswa has launched a scathing attack on ZIFA officials over the abuse of funds meant for the team.
“All @online_zifa officials implicated in the misappropriation of ZIFA funds must be arrested at the airport upon their arrival from Egypt. Failure to which, all those who support this move, join with me to wait for their return at the airport to effect a citizen’s arrest! Zvakwana.” said Mliswa.
He said the association’s Treasurer and Acting Vice President, Philemon Machana, should be arrested for embezzlement of funds and called on the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) to invite him for questioning.
“This man must be suspended with immediate effect and a forensic audit instituted. ZACC there you go, a job for you,” he said.
The Felton Kamambo-led association has been accused for the way it has bungled this year’s AFCON preparation.
Several reports of abuse of funds sent in by CAF meant for the Warriors fans were also diverted and with the privilege awarded to ZIFA counsellors.
This has raised the ire of football fans who accuse Kamambo of nepotism and rewarding his blue-eyed boys.
Mliswa further blamed the poor performance of all sporting disciplines to inadequate preparations.
“For as long as there are insufficient preparations, Zim sport will continue to perform at mediocre levels. We’re more social players than pros. You can’t blame the Warriors when administrators are stealing money. One’s mental preparedness & state of wellbeing is key before a match,” he noted.
Zimbabwean sporting administrations have been feeling the pain of the economic decay and most athletes have been left reeling from the effects.
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