Transformation fever has apparently engulfed the country’s most fancied sides, Simba and Young Africans after their members nodded to proposed changes to different model of ownership from current member-owned clubs. The wind of change started at Msimbazi Street with Simba members endorsing, during a general meeting held on July 31, the managerial restructure of the club.
The move paved way for businessman tycoon Mohamed Dewji (MO) to table a 20bn/- bid seeking to buy 51 per cent of shares of the club. A few days later their traditional rivals, Young Africans followed a suit on Saturday when its members unanimously approved a move to lease their club to their Chairman Yusuf Manji, giving him the mandate to own the club for ten years.
The clubs’ abrupt decisions, particularly Yanga’s lease, which looks alien to most football fans, have attracted mixed reactions among them football stakeholders in the country. And TFF President Jamal Malinzi apparently warned members and leaders of the two clubs to comply with laws and regulations governing the transfer of club ownership as stipulated in the statutes of international and national football governing bodies and the laws of the land.
“There is a hot debate over the ownership and running of our clubs, but when we discuss this matter, we should remember that any changes on the way our clubs are being run we must adhere to the country’s laws and statutes and regulations of FIFA, CAF, TFF and the respective clubs,” he said.
“We’re talking about National Sports Act of 1967, Capital Markets Securities Authority (CMSA) Act, which stipulates about collective investments and Bureau of Registration and Licensing Authority (BRELA) Act on shares of many investors,” he added.
He said it was also important that the clubs revisited FIFA statutes particularly the sections that stipulate about the running of a national league, the transfer of club ownership and clubs licensing.
“They should also go through TFF constitution especially the section which talks about the rights and responsibilities of TFF members,” Malinzi further said, recalling that all Premier League clubs are members of TFF.
“If all football stakeholders observe laws, regulations and procedures, things will move in the right direction and our football will make a step up,” the TFF President urged while insisting that it was important for club leaders to respect their respective statutes and ensure that they make constitutional-based decisions.
Malinzi, however, failed short of stating openly whether Simba and Yanga were right or wrong on their decisions. Dewji wants to own 51 per cent of Simba shares, which will make him majority shareholder, while the remaining 49 per cent of the stakes will be owned by the club members.
On the other hand, Yanga’s deal with Manji will see the club’s logo entitled to Dar es Salaam-based businessman, who will possess 75 per cent of the club’s revenues and the remaining 25 per cent will go to the club. In the agreement, the club’s premises, Kaunda ground and other physical assets will remain in the hands of the members.
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