Zomba shooting incident causes postponement of Civo, KB game

Some Lilongwe based soccer enthusiasts had a rude awakening Sunday afternoon after travelling to Civo Stadium to watch a league match between Civo United and Kamuzu Barracks only to learn that the game had been postponed due to the shooting incident involving a police officer and a Malawi Defence Force (MDF) soldier in Zomba.

Civo were scheduled to host Kamuzu Barracks in a TNM Super League second round clash at the Civo Stadium but a few hours before the game, Super League of Malawi (Sulom) issued a statement that the game had been postponed ‘due to reasons beyond the league’s control.’

However, Nyasa Times established from its sources that the game had been cancelled following some tension within the army headquarters- Kamuzu Barracks resulting from the fatal  shooting of an MDF soldier by a police officer on night patrol in Zomba.

“There were reports that some soldiers from Kamuzu Barracks were plotting to attack police officers assigned to provide security at the stadium in revenge for the killing of the soldier and the league did not want to take chances,” said a highly placed source from the league’s governing body.

Both teams as well as match officials did not show up at the stadium but fans, including Deputy Defence Minister Jappie Mhango did not get the message about the postponement and showed up at the stadium to watch the game.

The Deputy Ministry came self-driving his official vehicle to watch the match only to be greeted with news that the game had been postponed. He drove back after a small chart with some soccer officials present at the stadium.

However, Sulom went ahead hosting the other two fixtures involving Blantyre United and military outfit Mafco at Kamuzu Stadium and Karonga United versus Epac at Mzuzu Stadium.

Blantyre United and Mafco played out a 2-all draw while Epac defeated the relegated Karonga 2-1 to end their relegation worries and leave Blantyre United permanently stuck in the relegation waters.