Stakeholders question FKF's decision to splash millions on trophy

Stakeholders have questioned the decision by Football Kenya Federation (FKF) president Nick Mwendwa to splash millions on a trophy for the league champions at a time the top-flight competition is facing a financial crunch.

In the past week, Mwendwa has fielded interviews with the mainstream media, in which he paraded what he referred to as a "24-carat gold-plated trophy weighing 11kg."

The trophy, he added, will be awarded to the 2020/2021 Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Premier League champions at the end of the current league season.

The youthful football boss also confirmed the purchase of the trophy had set the federation back by between Sh5-6 million.

The Kenyan league champions are entitled to Sh5 million.

"What is the justification of having a trophy whose prize is bigger than the prize money awarded to the league champion?" posed Twaha Mbarak, a former FKF vice-chairman.

Former FKF president Sam Nyamweya also has also questioned Mwendwa's actions.

"Clubs have not been paid (their monthly grants). As a result, most players have not received their salaries for months. We do not even have adequate venues to host league matches. I am told sponsors are shying away and yet Mwendwa thinks it is a priority to fly to Dubai and get a trophy. Who does that?" quipped Nyamweya.

Mwendwa has however hit back, claiming in an interview with Nation Sport it was 'trivial' to question the price of the trophy.

"Why do you want to know the cost of the trophy? Why are you asking trivial things? What is the value in telling Kenyans about it. I am hesitant to talk about money but the heritage of Kenya. We are talking about what has been done that has never been done before. We need to get away from attracting monetary value in every little thing we do," he said.

The trophy was crafted by Crystal Arc, a Dubai-based trophy manufacturer.