The Kaizer Chiefs FC brand is too big to be allowed to fail, and everything possible must be done to save the club from total collapse.
These are the sentiments of UDM leader Bantu Holomisa, who is a big supporter of the club and also a close friend of Chiefs chairman Kaizer Motaung.
Holomisa believes that the club, with the biggest support base in the country, must remove the Motaungs from the management team.
He was speaking with Sunday World Engage in a wide-ranging interview this week.
According to him, among the best options to fix Amakhosi is to “outsource” the management role, with the Motaung family playing a role at the board of directors’ level as shareholders.
As things stand, four of Kaizer’s children are all occupying strategic management positions at the club.
Bobby Motaung is the club’s football manager, with his young brother Kaizer Junior operating as the sporting director, while their two sisters Jessica and Kemiso are head of marketing and head of digital, respectively.
The trophy drought has been a source of great frustration for the Amakhosi faithful, including Holomisa, with the rank-and-file fans vandalising stadium infrastructure on several occasions to vent their frustrations.
Attempts to turn the situation around by chopping and changing coaching staff have all but drawn a blank.
Holomisa believes the club’s problems started when Kaizer started scaling down his role to the background and pushing his children to the front.
“All of us supporters [are suffering from the poor performance] and I’m sure even the leadership of the team must be feeling the same.
“I am not sure, but I think that brand is too big.
“We might have to seriously consider, as fans of Kaizer Chiefs, to formalise how do we advise the leadership of the club,” Holomisa said.
“The fans of the club are used to [Kaizer] Motaung when he was hands on.
“Maybe the club should be looking at professionalising the management of the club.”
“Kaizer has built that empire for his family and also for the business of South Africa because if Chiefs are coming to the city the hotels are going to be full, the taxis are going to get money, stores and garages are going to make money.
“That product, we must jealously guard as the nation because Chiefs are a ‘national’ squad of some kind. We cannot fold our arms and laugh, saying they are crumbling. Let’s try to professionalise it .
“You must see Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson and many other clubs in Europe.
“You need a full-time manager to whom you say ‘this is the contract, take us from here to there. We are ready with the cheque to assist you with whatever you want. You want player X, we will work out something. Search for that player we want him here’, like Real Madrid.
Holomisa said Chiefs as a brand enhances the country’s economy.
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