National Sports

Labour Court summons FAM over Mwase compensation

The Industrial Relations Court (IRC) has summoned Football Association of Malawi (FAM) tomorrow to explain why a motion to stay execution of the court’s judgement that former Flames coach Meck Mwase must be paid K440 million compensation should not be struck off.

The IRC last year ordered FAM to pay Mwase the compensation for unlawful termination of his contract, redeployment and constructive dismissal.

Was awarded K440 million: Mwase (R). | Nation

Delivering her judgement last year, them IRC deputy chairperson Edna Bodole, mow a judge of the High Court of Malawi, said the K440 million is the required pay for Mwase’s entire 36 months of his contract in the same or similar wage scale as former Flames expatriate coaches Mario Marinica and Ronny Van Geneugden (RVG), who were his successor and predecessor, respectively.

However, FAM immediately obtained a motion to put aside implementation of the judgement.

But the association has a number of times failed to appear before the court without justifiable cause, according to court documents we have seen.

Now the court wants the association   to explain why the motion to stay the execution should not be stuck off.

The court documents read: “Upon direction from the chairperson and on the court’s own motion, respondents herein, the said Football Association of Malawi are hereby summoned to appear at the Industrial Relations Court Principal Registry sitting at Blantyre before the chairperson on the 23rd day of January 2025 to show cause why the motion to stay execution of the court’s order on assessment of compensation following a judgement delivered by Her Honour Deputy Bodole [as she was then] on November 28 2024, should not be struck off the cause list for failure to appear without justifiable cause and the order staying of the said order of compensation be discharged.”

Mwase’s lawyer David Kanyenda confirmed the development in an interview yesterday.

However, FAM’s lawyer Luciano Mickeus was not available for comment yesterday.

But the association’s general secretary Alfred Gunda in an interview said they are aware of the court’s summons.

He said: “We are aware of that and our counsel  Mickeus] is handling it.”

FAM fired Mwase with a year left on his contract in April 2022 at its executive committee meeting in Mangochi, where they replaced him with Marinica, who was initially the technical director.

Later, FAM redeployed Mwase as Under-23 national football team coach, but the coach turned down the offer and resorted to suing the local football governing body.

Mwase, who guided the Flames to 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) finals in Cameroon before being ‘demoted’ to an assistant coach as Marinica took charge of the team, was at the time of his dismissal in April 2022, receiving at least K1.7 million (about $1000) as his monthly salary while Marinica was getting $8 500 (about K14.7 million at the current exchange rate). RVG’s pay was at least $7 500 (about K12.9 million).

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