Khoza – still no verdict on Kaizer Chiefs Covid-19 saga

Premier Soccer League chairman Irvin Khoza says a decision on whether to punish Kaizer Chiefs for refusing to attend two DStv Premiership matches in December has yet to be taken, and that the matter is currently with the league’s legal division.

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The PSL executive committee announced shortly before the New Year that they had rejected a request by Chiefs, sent on December 2, to postpone all their matches in December, following a serious outbreak of Covid-19 at the Amakhosi village.

Chiefs refused to play in games against Cape Town City and Golden Arrows, though they did return for their final three Premiership matches of the year. Amakhosi could be punished with 3-0 defeats in the games they did not attend, though Amakhosi chairman Kaizer Motaung has said the club were “dumbfounded” by the league’s decision not to postpone their games.

The matter has dragged on for over a month, but Khoza on Wednesday defended the delays.

“There has been big debate to say the matter of Kaizer Chiefs took too long,” said Khoza.

“It took too long because of the complexity around the matter. The PSL fixtures affect a lot of people, a lot of stakeholders … and the process dictates that there must be fairness and uniformity in dealing with matters around fixtures.

“I know the media is waiting for us to make pronouncements. But this matter is part of a process. As an executive committee we declined the request (for a postponement). As we speak the matter is between our legal division and Chiefs.”

The PSL chairman did confirm that Zola Majavu had been hired again as a PSL prosecutor.

“He is now a member of the prosecution of the PSL going forward,” said Khoza.

The PSL chairman also announced the launch of the PSL Players Transition Programme, meanwhile, a scheme set up to help players with their careers after they hang up their boots.

“Multichoice are helping the PSL walk the talk with the launch of the Players Transition Programme, a way of progressing the lives of PSL players when they retire,” added Khoza.