‘MADZE’S HANDS TIED

MBABANE – They must tread cautiously. The intervention of government in the age cheating scandal involving the national Under 17s during the recent COSAFA Youth Affairs is bringing the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) statutes into the forefront.

Government, through the Minister of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs Harries ‘Madze’ Bulunga recently issued a stern warning that those involved in the alleged age cheating scandal would be brought to book.  For the record, the country was disqualified from the tournament along with Botswana, Zimbabwe and Comoros after failing age testing involving some players. 

The minister actually made it no secret that they (ministry) were prepared to report the Eswatini Football Association (EFA) to the Eswatini Sport and Recreation Council (ESRC) Tribunal to answer on these age cheating allegations. 

contesting

Bulunga stated that they were now only waiting for feedback on the EFA’s appeal to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) contesting the disqualification of the local squad in the tournament. 

He made it clear that in the event CAF upholds CAF’s decision to expel the local squad from the games, then heads will roll, warning that they would not rest until the culprits involved in the alleged cheating scandal are brought to book through the Sport and Recreation Council Tribunal as protocol dictates. 

It is however a known fact that FIFA statutes frown upon involvement of governments in football matters. If anything, the world’s governing football mother body never hesitates to hand out a ban on countries where governments are found to have intervened on football issues. 

Countries like Kenya and Zimbabwe have felt the wrath of  FIFA in the past after it was found that their governments interfered on football issues. 

understandable

“Madze must be very careful when handling the issue of the Under 17s disqualification. It is understandable that the minister wants to take action if the local football authorities are fingered in the alleged corruption by CAF but he must be aware that the FIFA constitution clearly spells out how far government can intervene in such matters. FIFA has structures that deal with football disputes like age cheating, so Madze must be very careful when dealing with this issue,” a well-known local football expert, who preferred anonymity, said. 

An impeccable source at the Sport and Recreation Council shared the same sentiments, revealing that punishing the EFA through government could bring trouble for local football.

“We have seen FIFA suspending countries where governments are accused of interfering on football matters. The issue of Under 17s cheating is dealt with by CAF using the very same FIFA statutes and the disqualification of the countries was done using the same rules.

concerned

Some EFA officials are boasting that our (government) hands are tied in as far as this matter is concerned,” a trusted source at ESRC said. EFA’s Marketing and Communications Officer Muzi Radebe said they would not repeat their statement on the issue. “We have made our position clear on this issue through a press statement and that has not changed,” Radebe said briefly. He did not want to commit himself on whether or not they (EFA) had filed their appeal to CAF as per revelation by the sports minister in his statement last week, stating that such was administrative.  If the sports minister indeed decides to report the EFA to the ESRC, protocol is that a Tribunal would be set up with an appointed chairman. This Tribunal including the chairman is not permanent as it is appointed specifically to deal with a specific issue. 

In essence, this means no such Tribunal is in existence at ESRC at the moment until such time the sports minister lives up to his warning of taking to task those involved in the alleged age cheating scandal.     

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