Newly appointed Youth and Sports Minister Ulemu Msungama has once again attacked the Football Association of Malawi President Walter Nyamilandu for associating with the former governing Democratic Progressive Party in the run up to the 2019 and 2020 Presidential polls.
Msungama, who had a one on one meeting with Nyamilandu at the Capital Hill offices in Lilongwe on Wednesday, travelled to the Mpira Village in Blantyre on Thursday for his first ever familiarization tour on sports associations.
And after completing his tour, the outspoken Minister minced no words as he accused the FA boss of being politically compromised by his affiliation to the former governing party which lost the June 23 Presidential polls.
He said: “I am a straightforward person; I call a spade a spade. Even the bible says only the truth shall set you free. So I believe in saying the truth. Every Malawian saw a picture of the FA President in a party regalia and this has affected our football in one way or the other.
“As government, we don’t like it and Mr. Nyamilandu should be told point blank that there other things he can do and other things he cannot do because even the FIFA Statutes restrict an Association President to be involved in politics so I was clear with him that the Tonse government will not tolerate this. To be honest, I am very disappointed with Nyamilandu’s involvement in politics,” he said.
However, Msungama said government was ready to work with FAM to improve football in Malawi
“We were given a challenge to prove ourselves to the President that we are willing to transform this nation in the opening five months and we are ready to that. As a sports minister, I will do whatever it takes to work with the FA to take the game to another level. You can agree with me that as a nation, we aren’t doing well and this is the area we need to work together to achieve this,” he concluded.
In his response, Nyamilandu told the media that it was now a good time to concentrate on improving the game, saying “time for politics is over”.
“I am not a politician and I have never involved myself in politics and my duty is to serve the government of the day. Let me respect his opinion on me but most importantly is forget about the past and move on towards improving the game. The Minister is eager to support the association and that’s what is important,” he said.
In the run up to this year’s polls, Msungama launched a scotching attack on Nyamilandu in which he accused the FA boss of trying to rig the elections in favor of the then governing party.
And in 2019, Nyamilandu sparked controversy last year when a photograph of him sporting a DPP beret went viral on social media ahead of the May 21 Tripartite Elections but later, the FA boss played down the issue saying he wore it because he liked it as it had become fashionable.
Iwe mbuzi ya minister umusiye Walter yo. Just do your work za mpira si za ndale ayi wamva?