Analysis by Duncan Mlanjira
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) president, Walter Nyamilandu is all poised to seek re-election at the elective annual general meeting scheduled for December but some of his opponents are rallying the non-voting members of the public to protest that the man has overstayed and should step down and allow others to take up the helm instead.
The questions that beg a quick answer is; if he has overstayed, does it mean he has not delivered? Where has he failed the nation?
Others are basing their arguments for his step down on the performance of the national team. Did he fail to provide the team with all the resources available in order for the team to well?
Sponsorship deal with FDH Bank
Our answer to this is what we agree with many others that the pitch performance and results of the team cannot be attributed to him because he is never on the pitch himself or on the technical panel.
The failure of the Flames should be blamed on many factors and not on an administrator who provided all the resources available for the players to give out their best.
Blessed with an imposing height, intimidating voice and a loud infectious laughter; Nyamilandu is a colossal figure that bestrides the football terrain with the swagger of a landlord.
It is no wonder that his opponents find it difficult to beat him during elections. Since 2004 he has defeated formidable football administrators and why are his opponents so worried of him standing again instead of them marketing themselves so well to dwarf him?
Excellent infrastructure at Mpira Village
It is not his physic his opponents should be worried of; rather, it is his smooth sophisticated manners of managing football politics. For three terms (15 years), Nyamilandu has managed to win majority hearts of the affiliates, not an easy feat if you ask us.
He is well educated from Chancellor College, a shrewd and seasoned marketer with Malawi Stock Exchange-listed Illovo Sugar Company and vast experience in football administration to boot.
In global football circles, Nyamilandu rubs shoulders with the best such as FIFA president Gianni Infantino and CAF president Ahmad Ahmad.
The entire Anglophone Africa overwhelmingly voted for him to be FIFA Council Member to represent them at the world football body’s decision making high table. They trust him so much. En route to that position, he defeated South Africa’s renowned football administrator, Danny Jordan.
Venue for the Cosafa Under-17
The truth we are failing to admit is, Nyamilandu is at a different level to his opponents in the upcoming FAM elections. James Mwenda, Moses Mkandawire and Alufeyo Chipanga combined are three times removed from the pinnacle where Nyamilandu is.
For a moment, we thought Nyamilandu will have tough time in his bid for a fourth term having served three terms especially given the type of opposition and vitriol mounted on him that trended on social media and even during some sports talk shows lately against him.
But the clever manner he announced his bid to stand again, we are convinced this will be another easy ride to Chiwembe’s Mpira Village. In fact, Nyamilandu’s victory has been made more certain by the disjointed reaction of his opponents to the announcement.
The Flames
Nyamilandu’s tactic of keeping people in suspense all this period and then breaking the news at the last hour, in the middle of news broadcast, knocked his opponents off balance.
He had dropped a tonne of red hot bricks on his opponents who have been praying so hard that he should not stand again.
Beyond the element of surprise, Nyamilandu became the talking point everywhere. He literary sent social media into a frenzy. Every household tuned to listen to the message.
Journalists from less known media houses were scampering for the announcement message a day after the initial broadcast. That is the magnitude of his power and influence.
Clueless opponents
And what has worried us most is the behaviour of his opponents. It seems to me they have no counter measures to Nyamilandu’s bid for re-election. You would expect James Mwenda and company to come out and fault Nyamilandu on his performance in the last three terms focussing on what he promised versus what he has delivered or failed to. And then tell us what change they will bring to the beautiful game.
Ecobank sponsorship
But this far, to say we are underwhelmed is an understatement. Nyamilandu’s opponents look clueless. They are busy paying bouncers to hang placards at football matches pleading with Nyamilandu not to stand. And the only reason they are citing is wakhalisa (he has overstayed).
Are people telling us that Mwenda and company have nothing to give the football fraternity than that wakhalisa? Is that a manifesto to market yourself and convince affiliates that wakhalisa? We are sorry to say, but Mwenda and company have only succeeded in telling Malawians that they are scared of going to the ballot against Nyamilandu.
And because Mwenda and company have nothing on Nyamilandu, they have resorted to what we may call strawman arguments. A strawman occurs when you realise your opponent has a strong argument so much you can’t defeat them. As a result, you resort to targeting a new soft target which can easily attack instead of the real one.
Social responsibility
By insisting on wakhalisa and Nyamilandu’s political affiliation, his opponents are literary running a strawman argument. The message they are sending us is that they have failed to find fault in Nyamilandu’s performance record and leadership qualities. So the only thing they can do is to say wakhalisa.
For crying out loud, we already know he has stayed for 15 years, so what? Has this caused under-performance? After all new FAM statutes allow him to stand. In fact, by standing again he will simply be fulfilling the law. And the argument that we might be raising a dictator is as preposterous as it is merely hypothetical.
They have forgotten that an old bloom not only sweeps better but knows all the corners of the house. And that old wine tastes better — it is mellower.
In these 15 years Nyamilandu has earned trust in the private sector and established the right connections little wonder he is able to get sponsorship deals with FHD Bank, FISD, Ecobank and Airtel for our football to flourish.
Political undertones
There are strong political sub-plots to the election. Mwenda‘s name was linked among those who are contributing financial donations towards Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC), which has been trying to vilify Nyamilandu for belong to the ruling DPP.
The Flames
Its not a crime to belong to a political party in Malawi. It is not a crime for Nyamilandu to belong to his DPP just as it is also not a crime for Mwenda to belong to a political party, which others claim is MCP. Unlike Nyamilandu who came in the open, Mwenda has been seen hiding behind HRDC without coming clear as an MCP sympathiser.
What is absurd is to harass Nyamilandu for belonging to DPP. No one has harassed Mwenda for being MCP. Again it is another sign of desperation by Mwenda’s camp to try to force Walter out of the election. At the very worst, Mwenda is using HRDC as a barking dog to scare Nyamilandu.
Two incidents come to mind. At one HRDC demonstration in Lilongwe one placard was hoisted up saying Nyamilandu has overstayed as such he should resign. This is utter nonsense! And in another incident, Mwenda, through his personal friend Ali Mwachande, used HRDC to threaten Nyamilandu.
Hosting a FIFA conference
Nyamilandu’s opponents hired a journalist who interviewed HRDC’s Timothy Mtambo to threaten Nyamilandu. In the interview, Mtambo, a human rights defender is heard harassing Nyamilandu threatening to investigate Nyamilandu if he stands again, saying many people have complained.
The entire HRDC has now become a bull dog anyone can use to threaten opponents. It is sad that the one who in public professes to protect people against undue aggression, would be at the forefront of abusing his own code by attempting to harass Nyamilandu who by law is allowed to stand three more times.
But all these attempts to stop Nyamilandu to stand have failed, miserably. And Nyamilandu has seized the moment. Whereas Mwenda and company are busy dwelling on non-issues, Nyamilandu has launched his football academy to underlined his commitment to developing football from the grassroots.
In a short period of time Nyamilandu has managed to secure two huge partners in FDH Bank and FISD to sponsor national football tournaments. Nyamilandu has managed to expose the business value of football to the private sector such that companies are convinced that football offers an excellent platform which they can use to promote their brands.
The Malawi national team has a good feel now. They beat Botswana to qualify for World Cup 2022 group stages. We are also in AFCON 2021 qualifiers. Now Malawians can look forward to plenty of international football.
Not to mention the imposing Chiwembe’s Mpira Village. It has accommodation, restaurant, gym and a flamboyant pitch. Our national teams from junior sides to the senior do not have to suffer difficulties when going into camp. Everything is now under one roof, under Nyamilandu.
Football in Malawi now has a semblance of professionalism; through Club Licensing, we have seen clubs being registered as private entities with secretariat, a reserve side and players are now signing contracts.
We have seen introduction of the Players Welfare Union to handle player’s labour issues. We have also witnessed commercialisation of the game leading to increase in TV rights and broadcast revenue. Not to mention harmonisation of the football calendar such that there are no conflicts between national duties and clubs.
These are tangible things we can all see with our eyes. Now Nyamilandu says he wants to raise the bar. And so far, Mwenda, Mkandawire and Chipanga have nothing better to show us that can eclipse these milestones which Nyamilandu has achieved.
And the fact that Nyamilandu’s opponents are attacking his FIFA position only shows their ignorance and desperation. Their line of attack is that it is for personal gain. This is false and inspired by sheer jealous — the bring him down syndrome.
The truth is, it is a plus for Malawi to have a FIFA Council Member. The FIFA position will help open opportunities in the areas of technical support through equipment, training for coaches, professional football, sponsorship and infrastructure development.
In conclusion, so far we are not convinced Mwenda and company have enough clout to depose Nyamilandu. If they cannot convince some of us, I doubt they can they convince the affiliates.
We believe Nyamilandu is by far the better candidate to continue sitting at the helm of football in Malawi than any of these three candidates.