MBABANE – A Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) multi-sport club has agreed in principle to a takeover of Mbabane Swallows.
Although the process has dragged on for some few months since Daring Club Motema Pembe (DCMP) – Imana Multisport Club, based in Kinshasa, agreed in principle to the Swallows takeover, this publication has been reliably told that the process is coming to an end.
DCMP compete in Linafoot Ligue 1, the top-tier professional football division in the DRC, and their president is Paul Kasembele.
According to a letter leaked and in the possession of this publication, Kasembele informed the ‘Birds’ in May of his interest in the partnership.
This was done in a letter dated May 26 addressed to Welile Mabuza in his capacity as ‘Umkhonto KaShaka’s chairman.
“I hereby confirm my positive agreement in principle concerning the acquisition of the aforementioned football club, as discussed in our earlier correspondence,” the first sentence of the body of the letter reads.
Kasembele then says he is favourable to establishing their partnership and remains ready to finalise the necessary arrangements upon his arrival on site, in accordance with his schedule and the timetable agreed between the parties. “In the meantime, I thank you for your trust and collaboration, and remain at your disposal for any further information,” the president further wrote.
A week ago, Swallows said in a press statement, addressing financiers and investors, that information regarding the financiers would be released in due course once all contractual agreements had been fully signed and concluded.
“It is no secret that the club is currently engaged in negotiations with potential investors and these negotiations are at advanced stage and close to completion. At this point, the names and countries of origin of the prospective investors cannot be made public, as premature disclosure may jeopardise the ongoing negotiations,” the statement reads.
Worth noting is that the red-and-white ensemble has hardly unveiled the names of possible investors, except for one group, Team JMR -Jean-Michel Ruhamanya which was also from the DRC. This was back in mid-June, when both parties said they had exchanged proposals, but there has been no update on the outcome of the matter. After them, Swallows allegedly met other DRC investors who were not disclosed.
Meanwhile, efforts to obtain an update from DCMP or Kasembele proved unsuccessful, as a questionnaire and WhatsApp call to the contact listed in the letter went unanswered.
However, Mabuza said the delay in the takeover was due to the incoming director being abroad in Belgium, with the parties still working to finalise some outstanding paperwork.
“The issue with the director is not delayed because they want to take over for 10 years, as some people may perceive. We are still in discussions with them, and once everything is in order, we will inform all stakeholders,” Mabuza said.
His comments about potential investors remained general, as he did not name anyone specifically.
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