Sports journalist Nyakundi asks govt to reveal details of FKF funding
Sports CS Ababu Namwamba (left) and FKF president Nick Mwendwa (right) during a meeting at the Maktaba Kuu Building in Nairobi on May 15, 2023.
What you need to know:
- Nyakundi, who’s been involved in legal battles with FKF down the years, has, stressed the need to access the information under the Access to Information Act.
- Specifically, Nyakundi says he is in need of information on the “amount of money disbursed by government to FKF” between July 19, 2022 and March 31, 2024”.
Sports journalist Milton Nyakundi has asked the government to furnish him with details of funds it disbursed to Football Kenya Federation (FKF) for a two year period ending March 31, 2024.
Access to information
Nyakundi, who’s been involved in legal battles with FKF down the years, has, in a letter addressed to the Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund Chief Executive, stressed the need to access the information under the Access to Information Act.
The letter is copied to Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba, Sports Principal Secretary Peter Tum, Sports Registrar Rose Wasike, the Controller of Budget and Auditor General.
The Act states that “every citizen has the right of access to information held by the State and another person and where the information is required for the exercise or protection of any right or fundamental freedom”.
Specifically, Nyakundi says he is in need of information on the “amount of money disbursed by government to FKF” between July 19, 2022 and March 31, 2024”.
A former sports reporter and editor at the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation and The People Daily respectively, Nyakundi has also asked to be furnished with the dates and purpose which the monies were disbursed.
“Access to information is a fundamental right enshrined in the constitution,” the journalist told Nation Sport.
Beneficiary of taxpayers money
“FKF is a beneficiary of taxpayers’ money and therefore the Kenyan people have the right to know how their money has been spent through FKF. This information is important for accountability of public resources and adherence to the rule of law.”
The request to government comes at a time Nyakundi is embroiled in a legal battle with FKF in relation to a case at the Sports Disputes Tribunal (SDT) in which he has sued FKF officials including president Nick Mwendwa for contempt.
Separately, Nyakundi successfully filed a case at the High Court to stop FKF’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) which was to be held in Nairobi on March 16, 2024.
In its audited books, FKF said it received Sh52 million funding from the government in 2021.
The government is mandated by law to fund all national teams and players at international engagements.
Nation Sport understands the government has funded a number of football activities in the country in the past year, including the Cecafa Youth Championships in Kisumu and Kakamega last year, plus the ongoing 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifiers.
