Sulom fines Masters K1.5m
Super League of Malawi (Sulom) has fined Masters Security FC K1.5 million for failing to fulfil their recent TNM Super League home fixture against Mzuni FC after players boycotted the match in protest over unpaid salaries and game bonuses.
The development comes hours after the side suffered a 3-0 away loss to Uganda’s Proline FC in CAF Confederation Cup preliminary round first-leg encounter.
In a letter to Masters dated August 10 2019, Sulom states that the team’s action was a serious misconduct under the league-runners’ Rules and Regulations.
“We, hereby, invoke article 17[2] of the Sulom Rules and Regulations, which stipulates that failure of a club to fulfil a fixture without any just cause, shall have the points forfeited and be liable to a fine amounting to K500 000 and the full points shall be awarded to the opposing team,” the statement, signed by Sulom general secretary Williams Banda, partly reads.
“Further be advised that the above-mentioned misconduct has brought the game of football into disrepute contrary to Article 21[53] of the Sulom Rules and Regulations. We, therefore, mete out a fine of K1 million for this misconduct.”
Masters general secretary Christopher Njeula yesterday said they are aware of the fine and they will plead with Sulom to consider reducing the punishment.
“We are very much aware of the rules and regulations; they are straight-forward. However, this is a charge, and we will give our side of the story to be reconsidered on the said amount,” he said.
In a related development, Sulom on Saturday gave Be Forward Wanderers 72 hours to respond to disciplinary charges for “acts of misconduct” during their league match against Nyasa Big Bullets on July 27 at Kamuzu Stadium where supporters “threw objects into the pitch and insulted the officiating team”. But Wanderers chairperson Gift Mkandawire said: “This was a small issue that has been blown out of proportion.”
