Gumede told The Zimbabwean this week that the CEO was the only man who really knew what happened, as all correspondence is addressed to him.
“When the ballot papers arrived in the country, Mashingaidze knows what he did with them,” said Gumede. “He owes the country an explanation because his has the sole responsibility of handling such matters”.
“People are now accusing certain individuals of voting, but he must explain because as chief executive he is responsible for the day to day activities of the association.”
The outspoken Gumede said there was no way Mashingaidze could not identify the people who cast their votes on behalf of the country, as upon sending the papers back to Zurich, he signed to show that he had received, dispatched them to the relevant people to vote and sent them back on behalf of the association.
The veteran administrator suspected an underhand ploy to tarnish the image of the association, still reeling from the effects of the Asiagate scandal. “One will be tempted to believe there is an underhand orchestrating all this to make Zifa the laughing stock of the world,” he said.
Mashingaidze expressed ignorance on the issue. “We will get to the root of this because it is embarrassing to the country. Anyone found to have done this will face the music because they have no place in our football,” said Mashingaidze.
While director of coaching Nelson Matongorere denies voting, it would appear people within ZIFA still believe he was the one who voted after former coach, Rahman Gumbo, denied he had cast a vote as indicated by the FIFA records.
The same FIFA records show that Matongorere also voted as Zimbabwe Warriors captain. With Mashingaidze reportedly ill, it remains to be seen when formal investigations will hit the ground.
Post published in: Football