HIGHLANDERS coach Bongani Mafu says he takes full responsibility for the team’s performance, but will not be drawn into entertaining comments on the social media that pertain to his job.
BY THANDIWE MOYO
Mafu was responding to rumours that he had been shown the exit at Highlanders after the 2-1 loss to Chicken Inn and that a new mentor had been identified.
However, Highlanders dismissed the rumour as the chairman Peter Dube is in South Africa as the head of delegation for the Warriors, who were taking part in the Cosafa Cup.
Bosso secretary Emmett Ndlovu had also been in South Africa, vice-chairman Mgcini Mpofu is based in Harare and the team has no treasurer as yet.
“I am the man at the top. The buck stops with me,” Mafu said.
“If Highlanders is playing rubbish football I am the person that should be spoken about.
All I am saying is that if the people are complaining about the quality of their football that is fair enough, but if people are spreading malicious rumours, that is dangerous! Somebody is going to get killed because you don’t know who is taking the message and what they are being driven to do.
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“I am not skirting from my responsibility unlike some people who do so and go to Facebook. It is my responsibility to reshape the Highlanders ship and play at least good football.
“Like I said immediately after the game, we did not play good football and there is no hiding from that because football is a theatre sport, it is done in front of people and Highlanders supporters want their team to play good football.”
The Highlanders gaffer said he supported the fact that supporters were demanding that they play better football because that is what they should be doing.
“I’m not on Facebook. I don’t go to that social media (platform),” he said.
“I was there, but then I discovered that it’s become a base of spreading of rumours and perpetration of serious bad feeling among the crowd which is already agitated.”
He added: “We lost a game and people don’t get happy after that, but if certain elements in our society and within our so-called professional circles go and post things that cause mayhem, the best approach is to get off Facebook, go to the field and coach football.”
Mafu said he had received messages from his “friends all over the world” comforting him over his “dismissal”.
“I keep telling them Highlanders is not a Mickey Mouse club which announces its decisions on Facebook,” he said.
“They call you when they employed you and when the end comes they will call you and make the announcement.
We are condoning elements among very privileged offices that just run riot and show incredible lack of professionalism and that is sad.”
Meanwhile, Highlanders have set June 6 for the handover of what has come to be known as the “Tshinga Dube Bus”.
The bus which had been stuck in South Africa for a while has been cleared and will be handed over to Highlanders at Barbourfields Stadium where Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa is expected to be the guest of honour.
Nothiwani Dlodlo, on behalf of Dube, confirmed yesterday that the bus had been cleared and that a driver had already been sent to collect it.
