Saintfiet failed to land the Zimbabwe Warriors job after being denied a work permit
"This nonsense about a foreign coach must come to an end," Cuthbert Dube, president of the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA), was quoted as saying by the privately-owned Newsday.
Saintfiet, 37, named as national team coach in September, was ordered out of Zimbabwe by immigration officials when he arrived without a valid work permit two weeks later.
"We would rather give the job to a local coach and send them to countries like England, Germany and Brazil to enhance their skills," Dube said.
"We realised our mistake and we will build on that," he said, adding that a new coach will be appointed before February.
The appointment of Saintfiet, who previously coached Namibia, had been a source of friction within Zimbabwe's football governing body, with some board members questioning his hiring.
Reports have also indicated that Namibian football authorities were mulling legal action against Zimbabwe for tapping their coach without authorisation.
Zimbabwe are currently lying third in Group A of the African Cup of Nations 2012 qualifiers, where they are up against Mali, Cape Verde and Liberia.
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