Seeks Fifa’s arbitration on Iranzi transfer saga

Ferwafa’s legal team had better be prepared if SC Kiyovu’s threats are anything to go by because the fallen giants have threatened to take the local football governing body to Fifa’s court of arbitration seeking settlement in the transfer of Jean Claude Iranzi to rivals APR.

The threat was issued by the club’s outgoing president Louis Claude Gasamagera in an exclusive candid interview with Times Sport on Thursday. According to the official, Iranzi, who signed for APR in close season, still had a year remaining on his contract with Kiyovu.

Yet impeccable sources say that Ferwafa evoked article 99 of its rules and regulation statute to sanction the U-17 international’s move.

But Ferwafa’s CEO Jules Kalisa retaliated by saying that Kiyovu are free to do whatever they like as it’s their right to seek justice. He however, said that the federation acted within the laws to sanction the move.

According to Kalisa, Ferwafa has no case to answer as they acted within Fifa’s approved rules and regulations. Quoting article 99, Kalisa said every player featuring in the national league is allowed to two full seasons at a particular club and after that, he’s free to decide whether to renew or join another club.

"After two full seasons at any club in the league, any player is free to move or renew his contract. So Iranzi was free to move to APR and Ferwafa have no case to answer” Kalisa said.

However, Gasamagera who ended his presidential mandate on October 5th, says Iranzi is still a Kiyovu player as he’s still contracted to the club.

Earlier, reliable source revealed to Times Sport that Kiyovu used twisted hand methods to tie the exciting left winger down to the two-year that runs out at the end of the current campaign.

Other sources said that Kiyovu seduced the player into signing the contract on October 10, 2007 with the lure of paying him his arrears for the period he had been at the club without a contract. However, Gasamagera denied all that.

He revealed that the course of action concerning the saga will be reached by the in-coming club management committee that will be elected soon.

The election of new office bearers has been called off several times signaling the hard times that have befallen the country’s old oldest football club.

Kiyovu have won three league titles in their history but all of them before 1994 with their latest triumph coming in 1993. One of Ferwafa’s other defences is that; a junior player signs a contract in the presence of his guardian and a Ferwafa official, a rule that Kiyovu bleached.

Some unconfirmed reports indicated to Times Sport that Iranzi presented an old contract to Ferwafa that showed that his time had ended with Kiyovu yet he very well knew that he has another running contract that had a year left on it.

The 17-year-old moved from lower division side Kimisagara Fc to Kiyovu as a junior player two years ago. Since joining the nine-time league champions, controversially though, Iranzi has featured in all APR’s league games this season.

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