Zifa boss caught 'fixing match'

EDZAI Kasinauyo yesterday became the first casualty of the new Zifa board after he was suspended on allegations of match-fixing as the ghost of Asiagate returned to haunt the association.

The former national team midfielder, who was voted into the Zifa board on December 5, 2015, is allegedly part of a syndicate that was planning to fix the Warriors' two-legged 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Swaziland later this month.

Zifa recently lifted all bans imposed on individuals implicated in the first high profile match-fixing scandal to rock the domestic game seven years ago.

Players, coaches and individuals such as ex-Zifa chief executive officer Henrietta Rushwaya, former Zifa programmes officer Jonathan Musavengana, player agent Kudzi Shaba, former PSL fixtures secretary Godfrey Japajapa and coaches Clayton Munemo and Emmanuel Nyahuma, were banished from football for their part in fixing the national team's games against questionable Asian opponents.

With the closure of Asiagate still fresh within the football fraternity, the Zifa board seems to have moved swiftly to deal with match-fixing threats that they detected linking Kasinauyo, who is the board member responsible for development.

The Zifa board instructed its chief executive officer Jonathan Mashingaidze to notify world football governing body Fifa and Caf about their decision to suspend Kasinauyo from all football related matters after their meeting in Harare yesterday.

In a letter addressed to the Caf secretary-general Hicham El Amran titled, "Provisional suspension of a Zifa executive committee member", Zifa seems to be in possession of audio and e-mail communication between Kasinauyo and match-fixing elements.

"The reason for the suspension is that Zifa has received information of credible evidence of the efforts by individuals within and outside the association to fix the upcoming 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier two-legged tie between Zimbabwe and Swaziland.

"The information we received includes affidavits, emails and audio recordings directly implicating Mr Edzai Kasinauyo, a member of the Zimbabwe Football Association executive committee," reads part of the letter signed by Mashingaidze.

Kasinauyo has been suspended from serving as a Zifa executive committee member and participating in all activities associated with Zimbabwe's senior men's national football team pending determination of his case.

Zifa also asked Caf to activate the anti-match fixing and illegal betting machinery around their Swaziland fixtures and their upcoming Afcon qualifiers against Malawi and Guinea.

"We now await Fifa and Caf to advise us accordingly having alerted them and set this match-fixing alarm. As an association we have a zero tolerance to match-fixing, illegal betting and general corruption and as such, no efforts will be spared to bring perpetrators of match-fixing, illegal betting syndicates and general corruption to book," said Mashingaidze. Zifa president Philip Chiyangwa is expected to issue a statement on the developments today after consultations with Cosafa, Caf, Fifa and the government, through the Ministry of Sport and Recreation.