Kennedy Gondwe
3 May 2004
Lusaka — Families of Zambian players who died in the 1993 Gabon Air crash have criticised the Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) for its alleged "discriminatory" manner in handling issues of players who die whilst on national duty.
On April 28th 1993, Zambia lost it's entire national soccer team in a plane crash off the coast of Gabon when the squad was proceeding to Senegal for a crucial '94 World Cup qualifier.
Despite the accident happening 11 years ago, Caf has not done anything for the Zambian families, let alone paying a visit by the body's president Issa Hayatou to Zambia.
Yet Caf, during a meeting chaired by Hayatou early this month, decided to allocate $100,000 to the family of late Cameroonian international Marc Vivien Foe and a further monthly $2,000 to the player's three children until they reach a mature age.
Foe died after he collapsed during a Confederations Cup match against Colombia last June.
After his death, a charity match for Foe's family was organised and the world soccer governing body, Fifa, has allocated $750,000 from its humanitarian fund to help educate his children.
"There's certainly discrimination in the manner the two cases have been handled. Both our players and Foe died in connection with international engagements but why is it that Zambia has never received anything from Caf," asked Sakwiba Sikota, one of the families lawyers.
"What we are saying is that there's nothing wrong with Caf doing that to Foe's family but they should learn to treat players who die on national duty equally.
"We are calling upon Caf to rectify the mistake, it's not too late."
Joyce Chabala, the wife of late Zambia's first choice goalkeeper Efford, shares a similar view:
"It's quite sad that in the first place, Caf are promoting segregation. I am not happy that they could do all that to one person (Foe) and yet we have not received anything from them. I don't think they care about us."
However, she is thankful to Fifa for having given about $1,000 to all the players' families after the crash.
Soccer analyst Ponga Liwewe accuses Hayatou of having little interest in English speaking African countries.
"Issa Hayatou has never paid much interest to what happens outside French-speaking Africa. The only time he has ever paid any attention is during an election year when votes are at stake," Liwewe observes.
"It is scandalous that he has never even come for the funeral or made any financial contribution to support the families of the Gabon Disaster victims. Foe's family deserve what they have received but Caf have to treat the football family equally."
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