BB cancel polls
Nyasa Big Bullets board of trustees has shelved executive committee elections at the annual general meeting (AGM) slated for next month.
The board has argued that it wants to concentrate on, among other things, fulfilling club licencing system (CLS) requirements such as ownership.
The board vice-secretary Victor Msowoya confirmed the development in an interview but the decision has not gone well with the supporters who are pushing for the elections to go ahead.
Bullets were expected to use the AGM to elect a new executive committee to replace the interim one chaired by Noel Lipipa.
Msowoya said the club will focus the AGM on analysing the outcome of a Taskforce that was set up to resolve the ownership challenges.
“The task force has finalised its research and the results are out. We want to look into them critically at the AGM and then decide which direction to take. This is why we need to withhold the polls,” he said.
“Our fear is that the task force might have come up with determinations that may not be in line with the leadership set up. It is, therefore, imperative that we wait.”
Bullets is currently registered under multiple ownerships, including as a trusteeship and a company, raising questions as to who really owns the entity.
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) recently warned Bullets to resolve the issue as part of the CLS which requires a clearly documented ownership explanation.
“Bullets might, in the long run, face sanctions if it doesn’t resolve this matter,” cautioned FAM CLS manager Casper Jangale.
In the meantime, Msowoya has said the interim executive committee will be in charge.
“Until any agreements are made at the AGM, the current committee will be running the club affairs,” he said.
Reacting to the development, Bullets supporters committee chairperson Stone Mwamadi said it was unfair to cancel the elections when the executive committee has few active members.
“There are only three officials that are active. Lipipa [treasurer] Alex Gondwe and Austin Kasito [second vice-chairperson]. It is, therefore, important that we beef up the committee with new people,” he said.
Mwamadi added that they are not convinced with the reasons being given saying: “If the mandate of the current committee is expiring there is no reason to stop the elections.”
However, Lipipa and Gondwe said they were not aware of the development.
Said Lipipa: “That is news to me, I will have to follow it up with the trustees; otherwise my position remains that our time is up and we need to seek fresh mandate”.
On his part, Gondwe said: “We are just hearing it as a rumour so it is difficult to say anything.” n
