Newly-appointed Malawi Queens co-coach Peace Chawinga-Kaluwa has hinted at discontinuing a case in which she sued Netball Association of Malawi (NAM) for unlawful dismissal.
The Queens legend, through her lawyer David Kanyenda, sued NAM at the Industrial Relations Court last year for unlawful termination her contract, constructive dismissal and discrimination under Section 60 of the Employment Act.
Earlier, the lawyer had indicated that efforts to settle the issue outside court had failed and that the case was heading for litigation.
But in a twist of events, NAM has re-engaged Chawinga-Kalua and Mary Waya as Malawi National Netball Team co-coaches.
On what will happen to the case following his client’s re-engagement, Kanyenda said in an interview that the two parties are on a reconciliation path.
He said: “The parties are on a conciliatory trajectory as evidenced by this interim engagement. The court case isn’t a priority at the moment.”
Kanyenda said her client accepted the appointment in an effort to revive the struggling Queens.
“As a patriot, our client is also gravely concerned with the Queens abysmal performance; hence, her agreement to participate in the revival project,” he said.
On her part, NAM general secretary Yamikani Kauma said the future of the case depends on the coach and her lawyer.
“That is not for us to handle at this time,” she said.
In appointing Chawinga-Kaluwa and Waya, NAM in a statement released last week said it opted for the two based on their track record.
The statement reads in part: “NAM believes that being the highest qualified coaches in Malawi, their experience in coaching and development of players, and having performed as players, the two are best suited to steer the senior national Queens and oversee the development of the Under-21 and Under-19 teams as we rebuild the team.”
Meanwhile, demoted immediate-past Malawi Queens coach Joana Kachilika has snubbed the November 21 deadline set by NAM to accept her new role as Under-21 national team mentor.
NAM reshuffled national teams’ technical panels last week that saw Kachilika being redeployed as the World Youth Cup-bound junior national netball team coach.
In an interview on Tuesday, Kauma said only Kachilika had not accepted her new role by the cut-off point.
She said: “Except for Joana, all the other members have accepted.
“Our assumption is that she might have been busy with the Salima Sugar Netball Championship. So, we have extended the deadline to this coming Friday to give her more time to ponder and revert, failing which then we’ll determine the way forward.”
In a separate interview, Kachilika confirmed that she had not yet committed to her new role as she was still consulting.
She said: “As I said earlier on, I would have expected NAM to inform me their decision before effecting the changes. So, I felt I needed a bit of time to consult before making a decision. “Anyway, I have a meeting with the NAM president [Vitumbiko Gubuduza] later today [on Monday] and I am hoping that it will help me make a proper decision.”
