By Mulenga Chapoloko
Athletics legend Samuel Matete appears reluctant to take up the proposed position under the ZAA technical team after losing the presidential bid to long serving leader Elias Mpondela at the weekend.
Matete lost to Mpondela by 51 -25 votes during the ZAA elective annual general meeting held in Lusaka on Saturday.
In a post-election interview, Mpondela who has been at the helm of ZAA for 22 years, told journalists that Matete will be part of the technical team.
But Matete, the 1996 Olympics Silver medalist, said he will only take up the proposed position on the ZAA technical bench when he is written to and signs a contract.
“You know what happened last time I reconciled with ZAA and I was appointed National Assistant coach and Copperbelt Director by mouth and nothing materialised. There was no appointment letter or contract. I do not want to go through the same things again,” he said.
“That has to be put in writing and signed by both parties for me to be part of the technical team,” Matete emphasised.
Matete said he is back at his academy in Kitwe to continue grooming young runners.
“I will continue developing athletes through my club. I am still part of athletics and I will always be,” he said.
On the just ended elections, Matete said: “Who am I to nullify the elections when I am not the one in charge of elections?”
“Some clubs that voted are not members of ZAA and we don’t even know where they came from. Even now I am still trying to get hold of the Electoral College as we were not given the Electoral College pamphlets,” Matete said.
