Swazi Observer

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PLE DEFIES COURT ORDER

By NOMALUNGELO PHIRI | 2025-02-27

SOCCER - IN an act that openly defies or disrespects the Supreme Court's authority, the Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) continues not to fixture Manzini Wanderers in league games.

Instead, the PLE has now demanded that the Weslians should produce a Club Licensing Certificate before they can play.

The Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling last Thursday, where Wanderers successfully retained their status in the MTN Premier League, thus bringing to an end of nine months of a marathon case. According to a source within the PLE, Wanderers have been served with a letter.

“Yes, I know for a fact that the PLE is not willing to fixture Manzini Wanderers unless they produce the certificate. You can even ask Wanderers officials about this. They have been served with the letter,” said the source.

The PLE, however, made it clear in court that it would be impossible to fixture Wanderers this season because they did not have a Club License Certificate.

“They (PLE) argued in court that FIFA was done issuing Club Licensing Certificates and they had closed, which means they cannot fixture Wanderers this season.

One then wonders where the PLE expects Wanderers to get the said certificate. I think they are just frustrating Wanderers and in the process defying the Supreme Court order,” said the source.

A Wanderers official, who preferred to speak on condition of anonymity, confirmed that they received a letter from the PLE, demanding the team to produce a Club Licensing Certificate to be fixtured.

"What I can tell you is that we have forwarded the letter to our legal team for advice and guidance. We will then respond to the PLE," he said briefly.

The official explained that the team had previously tried to submit all necessary paperwork for Club Licensing to the PLE, but were told they could not register them since their matter was still in court.

The Club Licensing Certificate is a mandatory requirement for all teams participating in the Premier League of Eswatini. The certificate ensures that clubs meet certain criteria, such as financial stability, infrastructure and adherence to rules and regulations.

The recent Supreme Court ruling in favour of Manzini Wanderers has sparked this request from the PLE, as the league seeks to ensure that all teams are compliant with necessary regulations.

PLE Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Petros ‘Pat’ Vilakati could not be reached for comment as he was reported to be in a meeting for the better part of yesterday.

Manzini Wanderers’ legal representative and Governor Bongani ‘Bhanyaza’ Mdluli confirmed that they received the letter from the PLE but referred all queries to team Director Wellington Motsa.
However, Motsa did not want to answer questions when contacted yesterday.

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