The comedy that has taken centre- stage at Mighty Wanderers FC continued on Tuesday when the team’s players wrote a memo to five of the club’s directors demanding their resignation.
That was not all. the five directors in question, legal adviser Chancy Gondwe, Adelaide Migogo, Ernest Maganga, Limbani Magomero and Sam Mponda as well as two others, Gift Mkandawire and Ulemu Chilapondwa, hit back by issuing a statement, hitting out at board secretary Humphrey Mvula, accusing him of being behind the confusion that has rocked Lali Lubani Road while rallying their support for the club’s former president and board chair Thomson Mpinganjira to take over the team.
In a letter dated March 1 2022, the players claim that they have established that the five directors have been in the forefront promoting negative publicity against the team through social and mainstream media.
Reads the letter in part: “According to our findings, we have noted with regret that out of 24 board members, the above five board members, namely Chancy Gondwe, Ernest Maganga, Limbani Magomero, Adela Migogo and Sam Mponda have been in the forefront instilling negative publicity through the official and social media.
“It must be appreciated that as directors, you have other means of income, thereby able to survive without depending on Wanderers. On the contrary, as players, our survival is football and our team is Wanderers which means that your behaviour affects us as players economically, socially and morally.
“With the foregoing, we the undersigned players of Wanderers FC call upon [you] to resign forthwith.”
Meanwhile, in their statement, the seven directors state that the root cause of the problems at the club is Mvula.
Reads part of the statement: “Some members of the board are being portrayed as being against our president Dr. Thom Mpinganjira.
“This is not the case and has never been. We love him and believe he is the best thing that has happened to the company at the moment. He is a good and generous person.
“His love for the team is unquestionable. It is our prayer that he rescinds his decision to resign from his position. The root cause of all these problems at the club is Mr Humphrey Mvula.
“The cancer that is killing the team is Mr. Humphrey Mvula. He has been misinforming people out there, mainly supporters that some members of the board do not want Dr Mpinganjira, yet it is him (Mr. Mvula) we don’t want.”
The directors claim that among others, Mvula has been making unilateral decisions, committing the company to potential sponsors without a go-ahead from the specific committees of the board.
The statement further reads: “He has been managing the team without the blessings of the Football Development and Management Committee.
“He has been hiring and firing of technical staff and managing finances of the team single-handedly. He has turned the company into his personal farm.”
“We believe Dr. Mpinganjira is ready to take over as per the request from the supporters. We, as board members, have no objection because we only want what’s best for the club.
“In fact, the board would be very grateful to get someone fully responsible and that has been our goal. The board reminds the supporters that it is only the board that is legally mandated to make such a transaction.
“We, therefore, ask the board secretary to urgently convene a board meeting whose sole agenda will be the process of handing the team over to Dr. Mpinganjira. After that we will also resign to pave the way for a new board of directors to be constituted by the said Dr. Mpinganjira.”
And reacting to the players’ memorandum, Gondwe said: “Let the players stick to their lane. They are just employees of the company..
“Mr Mvula is the architect behind all this. He drafted the letter and took it to the players to append their signatures. He forced the players to sign. Yet, he knows that directors can only be removed through a board resolution. The players signed under duress.
“As board secretary, he should be wise and knowledgeable enough on modern football governance.”
Mvula yesterday refused to comment on the matter.
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