Football Assocation of Zambia bankrupt

LUSAKA, April 28 (Xinhua) -- The Zambian government has said that the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) is bankrupt and has since called for aid of the cash-strapped association, Times of Zambia reported Monday.

This financial crisis has forced FAZ to engage independent auditors to examine the association's accounts for the last three months.

Sport, Youth and Child Development Minister Gabriel Namulambe said in an interview here Sunday that the national soccer governing body has less than a million kwacha (about 286 U.S. dollars) in its account, the development brought to the fore when the new FAZ executive committee paid a courtesy call on Namulambe at his office in Lusaka last Friday.

He said the new executive committee that was less than a month old in office outlined its vision and that there was need for the corporate world to come on board and help the association develop football as its vision was focused at nothing but raising the standard of the game.

"I had a meeting with the new FAZ executive last Friday. They paid a courtesy call on me and outlined their vision. FAZ has lessthan a million kwacha in the account. We should give them support and ask the corporate world to come on board. It's amazing how an association like FAZ can have less than a million in its account," Namulambe said.

The minister appealed to the public not to charge the new executive, as it was barely a month in office but observe and give them support.

FAZ treasurer Boniface Mwamelo said the association had received about 2 billion (about 570,000 dollars) in the last three months (from January to March) and wondered how there could have less than a million in the account.