Both parties agreed to part ways on Saturday
BONGANI MALUNGA
The Botswana Football Association (BFA) has terminated the contract of Chief Executive Officer Mfolo Mfolo following the CEO’s recent suspension. The BFA confirmed the CEO’s departure this past Saturday while also adding that the decision to part ways was mutual after both parties held discussions about Mfolo’s position.
Mfolo was recently suspended by the BFA as the association conducted investigations into the COSAFA Under 17 saga in which Botswana was disqualified after players failed a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan.
The BFA had recently revealed that they had appointed a committee to investigate the case while the CEO was placed on suspension, they had also underlined that they would conclude the findings of the investigations within a week. Unfortunately for Mfolo, the end result is his separation with his employers. Mfolo had been in the position since 2017 after taking over the reins from Ookeditse Malesu, his position will now be filled by Thabiso Kebotsamang on an interim basis.
Botswana, along with Zimbabwe, Comoros and Eswatini were disqualified from the COSAFA Under 17 tournament held in South Africa last month after most of the teams’ players failed the MRI tests.
This resulted in reports of age cheating although the association has since stated that other factors such as genetic make up irregularities could be the reason why the players failed the test.
The association’s stance on not being guilty of age cheating has been seconded by renowned CAF Medical Officer Thulani Ngwenya who explained in an interview published by the COSAFA website that age cheating may not always be the
“MRI is a FIFA-approved imaging used to determine eligibility to play in the Under-17 age group. The images are taken on the non-dominant wrist, which is usually the left hand. The image takes about nine ‘slices’ of the growth plate. There are different stages of grading the growth plate, from 1 to 6. Grade 6 is the last stage where the growth plate is completely fused. For the purpose of Under-17 tournaments, everyone who is a Grade 6 is therefore deemed ineligible to participate in this age group category. CAF introduced this method to make our sport to be a fair and a level playing field. This is an eligibility assessment, not an age determination assessment,” Ngwenya stated.