Lincoln Mutasa admits fault in former players' election defeats

Outgoing ZIFA Normalization Committee chairperson Lincoln Mutasa has admitted that the body he led is partly to blame for the disappointing defeat of all former players in the recent ZIFA elections. Seven former players contested various posts in the election held on Saturday, but none were successful in securing a place on the new executive board.

Makwinji Soma Phiri, who contested the president's post, was the most high-profile former player in the race. However, he received zero votes, with Marshall Gore (1 vote), Twine Phiri (4), and Philemon Machana (6) trailing behind Nqobile Magwizi who won the presidency with 61 votes.

In the race for the ZIFA board member position, 39 candidates, including five former players, contested. These former players collectively received only 5 votes. Sunday Chidzambwa, a former Warriors and Dynamos coach, garnered the most support with 3 votes, while Alois Bunjira, a CAPS United legend, received 2 votes. The other three former players, Walter Musanhu, Terrence Malunga, and Harlington Shereni, received no votes.

Reflecting on the outcome, Mutasa acknowledged that the ZIFA Normalization Committee might have played a part in the former players' failure. "I think we, as the Normalization Committee, should take some of the blame for that," Mutasa said. "When we insisted that we wanted a woman occupying one of the vice president's seats and one in the six-member board team, we should have also done the same for former players."

He expressed hope that the new board would work towards rectifying this issue and promoting former players in future ZIFA elections. "Hopefully, the new board will try and work to normalize that aspect. Also, I think as former players, we need to work on how we market ourselves because it's not all about being a big brand in soccer for you to have votes."

Forget Maringa, a well-known football analyst, echoed Mutasa's sentiments, suggesting that the new executive should consider amending the constitution to ensure there is at least one reserved seat on the board for a former player. "Honestly, as long as we have these corrupt councillors voting, former players need to have their own special seat in the board which they compete for," Maringa said. "What recently happened is enough testimony that if you do not have the money, you will not win the election, and it's not a secret that our players do not have the financial muscle."

Despite a number of former players contesting leadership positions in ZIFA elections over the years, Zimbabwe has yet to see a former player take the helm as president or vice president of the football association. The only former player to have occupied the top post at ZIFA is Lincoln Mutasa, who was appointed by FIFA to lead the outgoing Normalization Committee.

As the new ZIFA board takes charge, the issue of representation for former players in the governance of Zimbabwean football remains a key point of contention. The hope among critics is that the new leadership will find ways to ensure former players are not sidelined in the future.