Kalu Faces Uncertain Future

Former President of the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) Kalusha Bwalya faces an uncertain future as a result of changes to the operating procedures of the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS).

The CAS has announced that it will not host any in-person hearings before May 1st as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. However, the former African footballer of the year had hoped to appeal the decision by FAZ to exclude him from contesting the Association’s elections scheduled for later this month.

In 2019 Bwalya was served with a two-year ban by FIFA for accepting a gift in violation of the organization’s code of ethics. Following an appeal his ban was reduced to time already served and his fine reduced from $100,900 to $10,090.

However, the FAZ election process itself appears to be on hold following a High Court injunction earlier this week. A report by Diggers states that FAZ General Secretary Adrian Kashala has warned that there is concern the move could result in a ban for Zambia by FIFA. However, he confirmed that FAZ planned to comply with the court order.

“Yes, we have received an injunction. I think I indicated earlier on from the time we started hosting the elections that there were some people who wanted to stop us from proceeding with the elections. We knew this from a long time ago that several individuals are not happy that we have gone ahead with the elections despite us doing the right thing and following procedure in whatever we are doing,” Kashala was quoted by Diggers as stating.

Kashala also confirmed that the FAZ plans to inform FIFA of the development. The international body has previously warned FAZ that outside interference in the process could see Zambia suspended and as a result banned from all fixtures and tournaments including the CAF Champions league and the Confederations Cup.

“We would like to remind FAZ that FIFA attaches importance to the obligation of all its member associations to manage their affairs independently and ensure that all its affairs are not influenced by any third party. We further wish to underline that the violation of the obligations laid down by FAZ or its members may lead to sanctions as provided for in the FIFA statutes, including a possible suspension,” FIFA previously cautioned.

Meanwhile the tenure of incumbent FAZ President Andrew Kamanga has come to an end. Kamanga has led the body for four years, during which time Zambia has struggled in qualifications for the AfCON finals, although the U20 team did record its first ever win. He is recontesting the position.