Nape: Withdraw football cases from law courts

Dodoma. Minister for Information, Culture and Sports Nape Nnauye yesterday directed all clubs and individuals to immediately withdraw all football cases filed in courts of law.

Zanzibar, in particular, has been embroiled in administrative wrangles, which have prompted some to seek resolutions in the law court.

Nnauye said Fifa, which is the world’s football governing organ, prohibits the game’s disputes to be ruled by courts, warning that the pending lawsuits may have adverse consequences.

Responding to MP Khatib Said Haji (Konde-CUF) who asked what was the government stance on administrators who take football matters to court, the minister said, in principle such matters are not resolved in courts of law, and urged the leaders to abide by the rules.

Hamadi went on to query the ministry’s role in ending the protracted Zanzibar Football Association (ZFA) leadership wrangle whose case has yet to be ruled in the court.

“Well, whether it is ZFA or any other organ, the Fifa’s wrath will befall the respective member country. We are going to speak with ZFA leaders to see how the case can be brought to an end,” he said.

Nonetheless, his response sparked criticism from the opposition legislators who claimed that, football was a non-union matter and that Nape had no say on ZFA affairs.

“Nape (Nnauye) does not know what he is talking about, the Zanzibar football saga is out of his powers, so his response is wrong and misplaced,” said MP Saeed Kubenea, after asking the Speaker’s guidance.

The Speaker, who noted that the ZFA was not a Fifa member, said the minister would elaborate about the matter next time.

Speaking earlier, Deputy Minister Anastazia Wambura said institutions dealing with football have their constitutions, which create internal organs handling the disputes, thus their decisions must be respected.

She also said the government was already reviewing the National Sports Council of Tanzania Act, 1967 to reflect the current sports dynamics. Wambura admitted that some sections of the Act were openly contravening the FIFA regulations.