Exclusive: Voice notes, leaked information, and internal sabotage led to the dismissal of the club legend who served as both player and coach
When FCB Nyasa Big Bullets announced their separation from club legend Fischer Kondowe, the football community was stunned. After 24 years of service as both player and coach, few anticipated such an abrupt ending to his storied tenure at one of Malawi’s most decorated clubs.
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The club’s official statement offered no explanation for the departure. Chief Executive Officer Albert Chigoga maintained that discretion, telling reporters he would not disclose the reasons “out of respect for their legend who rendered his services both as a player and as a coach.”
However, sources within the club have revealed the full circumstances that led to Kondowe’s dismissal—a decision that came not from Chigoga alone as CEO, but directly from club the up top management.
The seeds of Kondowe’s departure were planted earlier this year when head coach Kalisto Pasuwa’s contract expired and both parties agreed not to continue their working relationship. Following Pasuwa’s exit, the Bullets board informed every member of the technical panel that they would also be leaving, unless the incoming head coach Peter Mponda decided to include them in his new setup.
When Mponda submitted his preferred technical team, he included Kondowe—elevating him from fitness trainer to second assistant coach as a mark of respect for his long service to the club. Meanwhile, assistant coach Heston Munthali, physiotherapist Chimwemwe Nkhoma, and goalkeeper trainer Vincent Gona were all left out of the new technical panel.
“Never Truly Part of the Team”
Despite his official appointment as second assistant coach, sources say Kondowe was never truly part of the technical staff under Mponda’s leadership. From the very beginning, he appeared to distance himself from his duties and responsibilities.
“Fischer was given the reasons why he was fired,” one source told Wa Mpira, speaking on condition of anonymity. “The big reason is that he never wanted to be part of the technical panel under Peter Mponda. In his own opinion, he didn’t regard Mponda as a great coach to lead Bullets.”
The source continued: “Fischer never offered any technical expertise to Peter Mponda as the second assistant coach. In other words, it’s like he never wanted to be part of it.”
Multiple sources within the club described Kondowe as “an isolated man” within the technical panel, systematically refusing to interact with colleagues or offer any meaningful tactical input during his tenure as second assistant coach.
“Fischer could stay away from the technical members and whenever asked to say something concerning any training sessions, he would just say ‘nothing, everything is okay,'” one source explained.
“Within the technical panel, he had no friends and he offered no technical and tactical support,” the source added. “He never celebrated the team’s victory when there was a positive result. During trainings, Fischer wasn’t even working with others. He could be staying away from others.”
This pattern of isolation and non-participation became increasingly apparent to both his colleagues and the club’s leadership, raising questions about his commitment to his role.
“The Damning Voice Notes”
The breaking point came following Bullets’ derby defeats to their fierce local rivals, Mighty Wanderers. After FCB Nyasa Big Bullets were humbled 3-0 in the league derby, Kondowe confided shocking sentiments to people he believed were his trusted associates.
“I am happy that we lost,” Kondowe told his confidants in voice notes. “In fact, I deliberately don’t offer any ideas to the Coach because this is what I want, I want to see him fail. Uyuyu si Coach ndipo sangafike pa Pasuwa [This is not a coach and he will never reach Pasuwa’s level].”
In a stunning betrayal, those confidants forwarded the voice notes directly to club President Konrad Buckle.
When Bullets subsequently lost 1-0 to Wanderers in the FDH Bank Cup, Kondowe made similar comments in voice notes to the same confidants—expressing satisfaction with the defeat and reiterating his deliberate sabotage of Mponda’s coaching efforts. Once again, those confidants sent the damning recordings to President Buckle.
“Systematic Information Leaks”
The problems extended beyond Kondowe’s passive non-participation. A second source, also speaking on condition of anonymity, accused Kondowe of deliberately leaking confidential technical information—a clear violation of the policy agreement that all technical staff members must sign before assuming their roles at the club.
“Whenever coaches were discussing their issues on a forum where Fischer was part of, he could take screenshots and leak it,” the source revealed. “He would not say any words during planning for any game.”
These systematic leaks of tactical discussions, team selection, and strategic planning represented a serious breach of trust and professional conduct, potentially compromising the team’s competitive advantage.
Notably, head coach Peter Mponda never formally reported Kondowe’s behavior to the board, choosing instead to work through the difficulties without escalating the situation to club leadership.
However, sources say that during a crucial meeting attended by Mponda, other members of the technical panel, and the board, President Konrad Buckle played the incriminating voice notes for all present.
In the recordings, Kondowe allegedly stated that the team was better without him—essentially expressing the desire for his own removal from the technical setup. The voice notes left little doubt about his intentions to undermine the head coach and sabotage the team’s performance.
The board acted on what they heard. On Monday, the club served Kondowe with a letter of dismissal that detailed all the reasons for his termination, including his refusal to participate meaningfully in his role, his deliberate sabotage of the team, and his systematic leaking of confidential information.
“Free At Last”
Shortly after receiving his dismissal letter on Monday, Fischer Kondowe posted a cryptic message on his Facebook profile: “FREE AT LAST, JAH GUIDE.”
The post seemed to confirm what sources had told Wa Mpira—that Kondowe had wanted out of his position under Peter Mponda all along, but rather than resigning professionally, he had chosen a path of passive resistance and active sabotage.
When Wa Mpira contacted Kondowe for comment on the allegations and his departure, he did not respond to phone calls.
Who Made the Final Decision?
While Albert Chigoga serves as Chief Executive Officer of FCB Nyasa Big Bullets, sources within the club were emphatic that the decision to fire Kondowe came not from him, but rather from the up top management of the club,
This direct intervention by the club’s president underscores the seriousness with which the leadership viewed Kondowe’s conduct and the potential damage it was causing to team morale, performance, and confidentiality.
After 24 years of distinguished service to FCB Nyasa Big Bullets—years that saw him contribute as both a player and a coach—Fischer Kondowe’s departure ends not in celebration of his legacy, but in controversy and recrimination. His story serves as a cautionary tale of how professional relationships can unravel when respect, communication, and loyalty break down, and how even the most storied careers can end in disappointment when personal grievances override institutional commitment.
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