Former Botswana Football Association (BFA) president, Tebogo Sebego, has taken over as the interim Botswana Football League (BFL) chairperson, a statement from the league said today.
After the December 16 Palapye meeting which purportedly removed Nicholas Zakhem as the BFL chairperson, Godfrey Ratlhaga took over on a temporary basis.
In today's statement, there is no mention why Ratlhaga left his role, but the board, during its meeting on Sunday, resolved to hand the reigns to Sebego.
"The Board resolved to appoint Mr. Tebogo Sebego to be the interim chairman until the court cases, arbitration tribunal and/or directors' disciplinary cases are concluded," reads the statement signed by Sebego.
The statement further said Zakhem and Jagdish Shah remain suspended as directors and the case has been referred to the BFL prosecutor. Shah has reportedly resigned but Zakhem has been fighting on, taking the matter to the BFA Arbitration Tribunal.
In the statement, Sebego said the board resolved to withdraw its court case against former Top 8 sponsor, Mascom Wireless and instead pursue dialogue. Secretariat personnel and not BFL directors, will now be signatories of the company's accounts.
The BFL board will convene an urgent meeting with shareholders on Saturday in Palapye where, among others, the resumption of the league, finances and status of the organisation, will be discussed. The league has not resumed since the festive break last month.
The BFL said it would also engage with key stakeholders like the Premier League sponsors Absa, Botswana Television (Btv), mother bodies, the BFA and the Botswana National Sport Commission, to appraise them on the latest developments.
While the BFL is pressing ahead with changes, the BFA has remained steadfast that it recognises Zakhem as the league's legitimate chairperson until the conclusion of the dispute at the Arbitration Tribunal. The saga has drawn in the Minister of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture, Tumiso Rakgare, who in a televised interview on Btv on Saturday, backed the BFL directors, hitting out at individuals who want to cling on to power.
