The ManicaPost
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As has been the case with its existence, which raised lots of skepticism among cynics, the High Performance Committee now poses another headache.
The HPC was put in place ostensibly to supervise Zimbabwe’s national teams and had hitherto comprised of ZIFA vice-president, Omega Sibanda (chairperson), Sunday “Mhofu” Chidzambwa (vice-chair), the association’s technical director Wilson Mutekede (who replaced Taurai Mangwiro), Rahman Gumbo, Moses “Bambo” Chunga, Innocent Chogugudza and ex-FIFA panel referee, Masimba Chihowa. But following Mhofu, Gumbo and Bambo’s co-option into the national team structures, what becomes of this HPC creature?
Chidzambwa was appointed coach for the Warriors’ COSAFA assignment, while Gumbo and Chunga will be in charge of the Chan and Under-17 squads respectively. Although ZIFA have explained that the aforementioned coaches will forfeit their seats on the HPC following their appointments, to prevent conflict of interest, and shall announce their replacements, where, on the whole, does this place or leave the much-maligned HPC? Has it been rendered redundant or it continues with its old mandate? Who is now going to oversee these erstwhile supervisors? Will the trio’s replacements be “competent” enough to supervise these seasoned coaches?
This all calls into question whether this HPC should have been in existence in the first place. It is not even a necessary evil, if you ask me! Early this year, Yours Truly offered his two cents on this creature.
That Chidzambwa and Gumbo are reportedly only around on temporary basis, what happens at the end of their brief roles, after completion of their tenures? Do they revert to the HPC? Also, is their appointment not a recycling of the coaches? Are we not going round in circles with this arrangement?
Well, as was initially feared, it all now looks like the guys on that committee have been finally rewarded for having long worked into the previous coaches’ work.
Maybe we did not see this coming, but are certainly now watching it play before us. Should the HPC not have been playing the supervisory role of effectively planning and organising how best the Warriors should be approaching the AFCON qualifiers as well as the COSAFA and CHAN tournaments rather than seconding some of its members to taking up coaching posts within the teams?
Is the babysitting and spearheading of the technical and developmental aspects of our national teams, as per the HPC’s founding agenda, not being compromised? Now that the coaches have been thrust into the deep end, will all eyes not be firmly on them to observe how they are going to fare, having previously been supervisors themselves?
But did ex-FIFA development officer for Southern Africa and veteran administrator, Ashford Mamelodi, not once warned us of the dangers of treading this path?
“That won’t work at all and it has never worked . . . and believe you me, many countries especially in Africa have tried without success to have such a setup . . . you should brace for problems and even instability . . . ,” Mamelodi offered us his piece of mind for no payment.
Perhaps Sibanda should come in now and explain to us this latest development, given that he once went on record as stating that at no time shall a HPC member be eligible for consideration or selection as national team coaches.
It’s Game On, Play On!
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