Government set to replace Zimbabwe board

A new administration to take over from the Peter Chingoka-led Zimbabwe Cricket board and managing director Ozias Bvute looks now certain in the next week, but not without incorporating some government-handpicked individuals.

Aenias Chigwedere, Zimbabwe's minister of sports, met officials from new proposed provincial associations who had petitioned him and President Robert Mugabe to "take action" after their application for affiliation with ZC on Friday was blocked by another quorum failure.

Sources told Cricinfo that Chigwedere is delaying approving the new interim leadership to run the affairs of ZC after the pro-board camp faction had complained to him that the committee, set up by the Sports and Recreation Committee, did not strike a balance. The new provinces want at least one representative on the new ZC leadership.

Chigwedere is said to have made an undertaking to expedite the provinces' affiliation, so that the new administration comes into office in the next few days. But since the new provinces cannot be registered lawfully as things stand, the government is likely to stir up more controversy by ignoring the ZC consitution and dismissing some stakeholders who the minister was told were "standing in the way of change."

The move of form the smaller provinces has been seen as a well-orchestrated move by Chingoka and Bvute to gunner support and consolidate their stay in power.

But Cricinfo has gathered that leaders of the pro-board camp have expressed reservations about the role of Themba Mliswa in the cricket leadership. They are said to have told Chigwedere and Mliswa himself that they would not want him included in the interim ZC leadership. "As much as we support the disbandment of the ZC board and the setting up of this interim committee, we do not wish to have Mliswa on that board, " explained one influential chairman from one of the five new associations. "Mliswa will not be acceptable to most people. As new associations, our objective is to spread the game of cricket to all corners of the country. We are not fighting the players, we are not fighting the old provinces, and we are not fighting the stakeholders. We just want to see cricket grow. We want an amicable solution to this crisis."

But it remains to be seen whether Mliswa will be willing give up on a position which he failed to get under Chingoka and Bvute, and whether the politicians will let go on an opportunity to control cricket especially after the Zanu-PF conference a few weeks back when the party announced its intention to muscle into Zimbabwe's major sports.