Mafco complains over Masters ‘breach’ of transfer rules
Mafco FC has complained to Super League of Malawi (Sulom) and Football Association of Malawi (FAM) over Masters Security FC’s use of midfielder Chikondi Maloya without the club’s clearance.
In a complaint letter to Sulom and FAM, Mafco chairperson Jimmy Chisenga states that Maloya is contracted to the Salima-based Malawi Defence Force (MDF) outfit until December 31 2020, but they were surprised to see the player featuring for Masters in the Charity Shield and the 2019 TNM Super League opener that ended in one-all draw against Moyale Barracks on Saturday.
The military outfit has since requested Sulom and FAM to mete out stiff punishment against both Masters and the player for “strange and disrespectful action against Mafco and the rules of the game”.
Part of the letter states: “[We] forward our complaint against Masters for featuring Mafco player without our knowledge and clearance. Efforts to talk to Masters to find out their reasons proved futile. It is an open secret that Masters floated the procedures.
“Our writing, therefore, [is to] request your office to explain in writing within two weeks circumstances under which Maloya was cleared, nullify results of Masters games, in which the player featured, and award points to their opponents and suspend the player until procedures for his transfer from Mafco are exhausted between the two clubs.”
In an interview yesterday, Chisenga said they are now waiting for a response from Sulom and FAM.
Masters Security general secretary Christopher Njeula said they used Maloya after the player told them that he was a free agent.
“The player has been in our fold for some time and had been featuring in a number of our recent games. The fact that we were not receiving any complaints for a long time made us believe that indeed he was not attached to any club,” he said.
FAM licensing and compliance manager Casper Jangale yesterday confirmed receipt of the complaint, but Sulom general secretary Williams Banda could not comment on the matter, saying he was in a meeting.
“I can confirm that we have received Mafco’s complaint and we are working on it,” Jangale said.
Regulation 18.3 of Fifa regulations, which contains relevant rules governing transfers, states that “a club intending to conclude a contract with a professional must inform the player’s current club in writing before entering into negotiations with him. A professional shall only be free to conclude a contract with another club if his contract with his present club has expired or is due to expire within six months”. n
