Mmegi Online

BFL chairmanship brawl reaches High Court

Zakhem and Shah have approached the High Court challenging their removal from the Botswana Football League (BFL) board PIC: MORERI SEJAKGOMO
Zakhem and Shah have approached the High Court challenging their removal from the Botswana Football League (BFL) board PIC: MORERI SEJAKGOMO

The legal dispute over the control of the Botswana Football League (BFL) will be adjudicated in the High Court following an urgent application by the ousted chairperson, Nicholas Zakhem and board member, Jagdish Shah.

The two officials were removed from the board by some shareholders after a special general meeting held in Palapye last weekend. The meeting installed Godfrey Ratlhaga (Masitaoka chairman) as the new chairperson, while Tumelo Toteng, TAFIC chairman, replaced Shah on the board.

Reported tensions within the BFL, accumulating over time, drove the decision. One of the reported reasons for the fallout was the decision to relegate four Premier League teams at the end of the current season. Some clubs reportedly opposed this decision, while the BFL leadership maintained that the Premier League should consist of 12 teams, as agreed. In their initial attempt to remove the two leaders, the shareholders faced a setback as the planned meeting was deemed illegal.

Editor's Comment
Get back what was stolen, and lock the door

That a single private law firm pocketed P6.5 million for just four cases, out of a total P11.1 million paid for 25 matters, reeks of a system that was not merely disorganised but open to abuse.Bayford has taken a welcome first step by telling the Public Accounts Committee the truth. Now he must act decisively to ensure it never happens again and that any money lost to wrongdoing is recovered.The figures are staggering. Whilst ordinary Batswana...

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