Kondi Msungama eyes BB hot seat

Former Big Bullets treasurer Kondi Msungama has declared interest to stand as the club’s executive committee chairperson during elections slated for February 8.

Msungama has since dismissed general secretary Higger Mkandawire sentiments that this is not coming in good faith.

Msungama told The Nation last weekend that a number of Bullets lovers have been asking him to contest for the seat “to clear the mess that the recently dissolved committee created” and he had to accept “for the love of the team”.

“I, initially, wanted to ignore the request, but after deep thoughts, I realised I will not do any justice to the team if I refused. I love the team so much that I cannot afford to step aside and watch it dying,” said Msungama.

“Of course, I did my part as treasurer and technical director during the team’s most successful period—between 1998 and 2005—but with the way things are at present, I have to agree to the people’s demands to stand as chairperson. We need to get things back in order at Bullets.”

Msungama, who has become the first individual to declare interest for the hot seat, said his first mission will be to engage a strong technical panel that can ably identify good players for the team to end a title drought it has suffered for years.

He said he would also ensure that players are paid their dues in good time; introduce finance, disciplinary and technical committees and publicise every transaction on player transfers for the sake of transparency.

But Mkandawire told The Nation on Monday that Msungama has nothing to offer to the club.

He argued that Msungama was one of the people that cooked up stories in the media and destabilised the team during the yet-to-be-completed TNM Super League season so that the team should not win any silverware.

“This is one of the guys behind our failure to grab a title this season. He cannot be trusted. They deliberately wanted the team to fail on its title hunt so that their interest to get positions in the team should be fulfilled. One by one, these bad people are coming out of their shell to contest for positions.

“I am telling you, these people are not coming in good faith. They have an agenda to kill the team,” said Mkandawire.

But in response, Msungama said his statements were genuine concerns and the constitution does not bar him to vie for any position at the club.

“Tell Higger to shut up and go quietly to retirement. I am coming back as administrator to clear the mess they created. I was not confusing anyone with my statements on their (dismissed executive committee) failure to run the club professionally,” said Msungama.

He described Mkandawire as a baby who is still in the learning process of football administration.