DESPITE scepticism from a number of people, Philip Chiyangwa romped to victory in the Zifa polls held at the weekend and hopefully he can hit the ground running.
Chiyangwa’s victory has elicited mixed emotions from football lovers, as others believe he is the man to lead Zifa into the future, while a strong case has been made that he has a chequered record as an administrator, traits that are unwanted at the football governing body.
Discussing Chiyangwa’s acumen right now is irrelevant, as he has just won the election and it is what he has in store for football that should matter.
No doubt, he ran the loudest and sometimes most obnoxious campaign, but that is expected from politicians and this should now be a thing of the past.
Winning the election was the easy part Chiyangwa, moving the game forward is an entirely different matter and this is where all his energies must lie.
Zimbabwean football is in a mess, the country was booted out of the Fifa World Cup qualifiers, junior football structures are almost non-existent and the women’s game is literally surviving on hand outs.
Other structures like Five-A-Side have been thrust into oblivion, meaning Chiyangwa and his board have their work cut out. Chiyangwa ran his campaign on his fundraising and business shrewdness and these are skills, combined with administrative guile, that are needed to resurrect the game in Zimbabwe.
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We hope Chiyangwa celebrated his victory at the weekend, because from now on, he has to roll up his sleeves and get down to work.
The Warriors qualified for the Chan tournament in Rwanda next year and if the nation is expecting anything from them, then they should be well-prepared and well-resourced for this campaign and this business of them being locked out from hotels over non-payment should be a thing of the past.
The Mighty Warriors, our pride and joy, qualified for next year’s Olympics Games in Rio, Brazil, and all efforts should be on ensuring that they are well-catered for.
The way the women’s football teams prepared for the qualifiers should be an embarrassment and a scar on the consciences of everyone involved in football administration.
As one board member revealed, they sometimes only had kapenta fish and buns for their lunch, something that should bring collective shame on the nation.
Now that they have qualified, Chiyangwa has a chance to right past wrongs and change the direction the game was taking.
The Mighty Warriors deserve pampering for their historic qualification and Chiyangwa and his team should ensure that.
The scepticism that characterised Chiyangwa’s campaign will only be amplified now that he is at the helm and he should be reminded that his administration will be under microscopic scrutiny, as there are many that believe he is not what football needs.
The only way Chiyangwa can confound sceptics is by producing results.
We wish him luck.
