BB debt haunts Fam official
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) facility and transfer matching system manager Casper Jangale claims he is being haunted by a Big Bullets ‘creditor’ to whom he surrendered K1.5 million realised from Sunday’s Kamuzu Stadium gate collections.
Jangale yesterday claimed that he, at FAM’s Chiwembe Technical Centre offices, surrendered the money to Chifundo Chanunkha on Monday as part payment of K3 million which Bullets owe him having ‘borrowed’ K2.5 million to pay players’ allowances.
However, Bullets general secretary Harold Fote yesterday claimed that the team borrowed K3 million from Chanunkha of Blantyre’s Ndirande Township and owed him a similar amount.
“Before being forced to come to FAM to release the money, I was held up outside Southern Region Police Headquarters from 9 am to 2 pm. I could not even move to take a mobile phone call. Being surrounded by bouncers was so scary,” Jangale claimed at the FAM premises while looking warily over his shoulders.
“I had to do everything in their presence. Tiya Somba-Banda [Sulom treasurer] eventually found me at the police premises while looking for money for buying a casket [of late Douglas Chirambo]. He reasoned with them to release the money for the casket.”
Chanunkha yesterday denied having threatened Jangale who further claimed that, despite the gate collections belonging to Bullets, he and Somba Banda were forced to commit into settling the balance from gate collections of the most immediate Bullets’ matches.
“I have reported the matter to Limbe Police Station. I have not slept for three days. I have even had to drive to the police after noticing that I am being trailed in town. This is not football. If this continues, I will have to step down,” Jangale explained, but could not prove that those who pursued him were linked to Chanunkha.
Chanunkha yesterday said Jangale was being uncooperative in paying back the money for the 2015 CAF Champions League first round, second leg whose gate collection process FAM took charge of.
“I have a copy of the agreement with Bullets that I was supposed to be paid after the return leg [against Al Hilal]. What does he mean when he says we held him up? Why did he have to have the money counted at the police station? I demanded the money from him because he was keeping it,” Chanunkha explained.
“All this could have been avoided if Kondi Msungama was not removed from his position. Ahead of the first leg, the whole Bullets executive approached me to help them with money for players’ allowances. I reluctantly gave them the money out of sympathy.”
Fote seemed to agree with Chanunkha that Jangale was not held up and that all the team’s officials were at the police premises where the money was being counted.
“It’s not the way he [Jangale] is portraying it and it wasn’t even katapila [usury]. We got K3 million and we owe him K3 million. It’s not only Chanunkha, we referred to FAM other creditors and it was Casper who was visible. Casper could not disclose where the money was,” Fote claimed.
“At first, he said the police officer who was in custody of the money was in Bvumbwe, then he said the money was at FAM. He was not held hostage over the money.”
Limbe Police publicist Chifundo Chibwezo said she needed to verify at her office if indeed Jangale reported his incident.
Blantyre lawyer Jai Banda, commenting in general terms, yesterday said legally, you cannot charge interest unless “you are an authorized bank and, according to Loans Recovery Act 604, a court may re-open a transaction where the interest charged is excessive.”
Bullets have a debt estimated to be in the excess of K20 million incurred during their CAF Champions League campaign.
