It hurts to see Women’s Afcon taking place without our Starlets

In a different universe that is fairer and more pleasant, the women’s national team, Harambee Starlets, would have been in Morocco today testing their might against continental opponents in the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon).

They would have exercised their God given talents by playing quality friendly matches with their peers such as Gambia, Ethiopia and Namibia in the last three weeks, before proceeding to represent the country in the prestigious continental tourney taking place in Morocco.

Also, they would be collecting allowances, as all professional players should, and using that to make life better for themselves and their loved ones.

But this is Kenya, in the year 2022, where we have failed to get the football vehicle to run properly since the 1970s when it first encountered engine failure.

This is a world where rule of law takes false precedence, and cases involving suspected thieves of public funds take ages in court, and sometimes never end.

A world where those leading the game make decisions that serve only their interests, leaving majority of football lovers desperate for real change.

A country with individuals like Bitter Barry who are so vindictive that they withdraw a whole national team from a major competition, just because they can.

I am only mentioning individuals who played a major role in keeping Starlets away from what could have been Kenya’s second appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations.

In case you forgot how we got here, here is a brief. Harambee Starlets were well on course to playing at this year’s Wafcon, and event entered camp in February this year in preparation for a double-legged qualifying match against the Crested Cranes of Uganda.

That match was called off by the good people at CAF (Confederation of African Football) who acted on the strength of a letter written by former FKF Chief Executive Officer Barry Otieno, aka Bitter Barry, withdrawing the team from the competition.

His reason was that the federation had been disbanded and hounded out of their Kandanda House offices, and were therefore unable to organise logistics for the match. In short, they wanted to be the ones to organise the Starlets match, and no one else.

Everyone thought, “what a big joke Bitter Barry is onto”, but eventually it happened.

The match was called off, Starlets broke camp, and Uganda advanced with a walk over. The rest, as they say, is history. Now, the Crested Cranes of Uganda are in Morocco, collecting valuable lessons and experience, and we are left saying, “that could have been us”.

That Uganda are at the bottom of Group “A” table having lost their first two matches against Senegal and Morocco is beside the point.

Back home, football is one big pile of bedlam, with the government and former FKF office holders involved in an endless game of legal gymnastics.

I can only imagine how discomfiting this situation is for Starlets players. How angry they must feel as they watch their counterparts playing against the continent’s best in Morocco.

Yes, Bitter Barry was extremely provocative in his behaviour, but why has the government forgotten that it has a responsibility not to aggravate things?

In unrelated news, now that Wafcon has stuck as the title of this tournament, should we start referring to the men’s version of the tournament as Mafcon?

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