THE Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) has announced plans to surrender its responsibilities for all national teams to the government – citing a cash squeeze.
The senior Zimbabwe national team aborted a trip to Mozambique on Thursday after ZIFA failed to pay airfares before being rescued by Mbada Diamonds, the Marange diamond miner.
Now ZIFA chief Cuthbet Dube – elected on a promise to rally financial support for the country’s underperforming national teams – has been forced to admit failure.
“We appeal to the government to take over the funding for all national teams on international assignments,” he said on Friday evening at the launch of the FIFA Goal Project Phase III in Harare.
Dube, who claims to have invested no less than US$500,000 of his personal fortune to rescue the association and national teams, is set to put his controversial proposals to Sports Minister David Coltart.
But he knows the plan is unlikely to find any takers in central government, with Finance Minister warning that major capital projects announced in his 2012 budget could be shelved due to lack of finance.
Dube is also proposing that ZIFA be exempt from paying taxes to increase its revenues.
But even as he admitted failure, Dube told delegates at the event who included FIFA's Development Officer Ashford Mamelodi that he expects his board to be re-elected in 2014 for a new four-year term.