LISTEN TO FOOTBALL ADMINISTRATORS, MUTALE TELLS FAZ

By NOEL IYOMBWA

FOOTBALL administrator Damiano Mutale says it is high time the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) started listening to football administrators.

In an exclusive interview, Mutale said councillors were the watchdog of football hence they know when things were right or wrong adding that the outcome of the Muza football club proposal case was a sign that some decisions made by FAZ were not always right.

He said football was not for an individual but for the entire population of the country and commended MUZA football club and football councillors for coming out strong over the matter.

“That’s how it should be. Muza Fc has done a commendable job on the matter because football is not for one person but for all of us. I am also happy with the way councillors came out. They came out strongly because they realised that things are not okay.

“Councillors cannot be quiet when things are not okay for fear that once they speak, they will be suspended. Councillors are there to correct things and they should continue to correct mistakes because that is the only way we can develop Zambian football,” Mutale said.

He stated that councillors had the power to control football but that for fear of being banned or suspended, they would rather not come out even when things were going wrong.

And Mutale advised the football governing body, FAZ, to quietly look into factors that were leading to poor football performance among men’s national teams.

He said it was not a secret that football performance among men’s national teams in the country was declining every day.

“Things are not okay with regards to football in the country. People have realised that football has gone to the dogs,” he said.

FAZ’s attempt to block the Muza FC proposal has failed after being overruled by the FAZ Council – football’s supreme body. This happened at the recently-reconvened FAZ Annual General meeting at Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka.

Northern Province Women representative Beauty Namwawa moved a motion proposing that before the agenda could be adopted, the proposal which was submitted by MUZA Football Club be included.

The submission by the Northern Women representative was almost blocked again by Andrew Kamanga and a member from the Governance Committee on the basis that it did not meet the 50+1 requirement.