Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) aspiring presidential candidate Keith Mwewa has dragged FAZ general secretary Adrian Kashala to the Lusaka High Court, seeking an order of injunction to restrain the latter from conducting provincial workshops or selection of provincial representatives.

Mwewa, who has cited Kashala as respondent in the matter, wants the court to grant him an order of interim injunction, later on interlocutory, pending determination of arbitration proceedings following his request to the Zambia Centre for Arbitration to appoint an arbitration tribunal.

According to an affidavit in support of originating notice of motion and summons for an order of interim injunction filed in the Lusaka High Court, Monday, Mwewa, who resides in Kafue district, stated that he intended to contest the position of FAZ president at the forthcoming elective general meeting set for March, 2020.

He stated that as a candidate, he was concerned that the FAZ secretariat was conducting unconstitutional meetings in the name of provincial workshops where they intend to elect or select their regional representatives at the Emergency Council meeting and the consequent elective general meeting.

“The said elections and or selections are illegal in that the mandate to conduct elections for any FAZ organ is a mandate of the elections committee, which is not in place yet [and] may only be put in place at the Emergency Council meeting to be held in February 2020 in terms of article 55 of the FAZ constitution,” Mwewa stated.

He stated that he could not expressly sue them to have their manoeuvres cancelled by the court because article 63 of the FAZ Constitution provides for arbitration, which he has applied for to the Zambia Centre for Arbitration so that an arbitration tribunal could be appointed.

Mwewa added that Kashala was meanwhile proceeding with the said illegal meetings, adding that the first one for North Western Province was held on January 12, 2020.

He lamented that if the meetings were allowed to proceed, he would be disfranchised (deprived) in that by the time the arbitration proceedings would be concluded, the regional representatives who form a large part of the electoral college would have been illegally put into office to vote for “their masters”.

“In the interest of justice, I indulge this court to grant an order of interim injunction, later on interlocutory, to restrain the respondent from conducting the said purported provincial workshops and or selection of provincial representatives pending determination of arbitration proceedings in the interest of justice and far play,” stated Mwewa.