|The Vital | 13th March, 2026|
Highly respected former FIFA referee Gladys Lengwe has resigned as FAZ Referees Committee chairperson, citing unprecedented levels of corruption.
In a letter to FAZ general secretary, Lengwe complained that attempts by her committee to halt the perpetual appointments of corrupt referees had been frustrated.
“I have been refereeing for over 25 years, I have seen how refereeing has evolved over the past years, I was nurtured in an environment of integrity. I have served under the Referees Association of Zambia and the late Katongo Kabungo as referees manager (may his soul rest in peace. I never saw this level of corruption in refereeing. It may have been there but not to this extent.”
“Mr General Secretary, we (Referees Committee) have been made (reduced) to be a shell of a committee. The Referees Manager Stanley Hachiwa has more powers than us. I questioned the perpetual appointments of the corrupt referee, he has decided to ignore my directives and decided to appoint the same referees. His behaviour has spoken a lot.”
