Sports Minister, Kirsty Coventry has castigated the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) for not taking women’s football seriously while focusing only on men’s football.
Coventry also questioned the wisdom behind CAF and FIFA’s demands that the government should not interfere in the affairs of ZIFA yet the local football body receives a lot of financial support from the government.
Writing on microblogging social media site, Twitter, Coventry said:
I asked the ZIFA Chair for a meeting to discuss the women’s qualifying debacle on Sunday he proceeded to ask the government for money for the Men’s Team to travel tomorrow! I have had enough of Women’s sport not being taken seriously in Zimbabwe.
The government took on #ZimCricket debt but told not to interfere. #ZIFA once again asks for more money but the government told not to interfere. This is taxpayers money you are ‘playing’ with! Both these associations get huge amounts of money from their international federation – where is it?
Asking for money alone is not asking for help. You need help in restructuring everything from the ground up and I have been willing and ready (from the beginning) to work with CAF and FIFA and ICC and any other organization to make Zimbabwe a Sporting Powerhouse.