Just sit back and watch more confusion in Kenyan football
Football Kenya Federation Caretaker Committee chairman Retired Justice Aaron Ringera (right) prepares to present the panel's report to Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed (centre) and Sports Permanent Secretary Joe Okudo at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani on May 11, 2022.
What you need to know:
- Some people have gone to court to block the Transition Committee from taking office.
- We doubt if this will help but we leave it to the courts to give direction. We foresee a bleak future for Kenyan football.
- When the five weeks elapse, we won’t be surprised if the team gets more time!
The six-month term of the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Caretaker Committee came to a mandatory legal end mid last week.
If the panel did anything good to Kenyan football, then they know it themselves. They have been a silent lot but we do know what the Kenyan football clubs are undergoing in terms of financial desperation.
We decreed in this column last week that their mandate would be renewed by the Sports Cabinet Secretary, Amina Mohamed.
That has come to pass. The CS did not just extend their stay, but has gone ahead to rebrand them.
They are no longer FKF Caretaker Committee, they are now called FKF Transition Committee and they have been given five more weeks to hurt our feelings.
What they could not do in six months, they can now do in some thirty-five days. The whole thing was gazetted on Friday, and thus it is a government directive.
The change was in name only, but the people remain the same. It is cosmetic and cynical; the CS has just ordered the calm rearrangement of deck chairs for the comfort of First Class passengers in a sinking ship! It was that cruel.
To them it is just a game of musical chairs. And while at it, the panel is totally ignorant of the plight of football players; referees, club officials and their families that depend on their earnings to make ends meet in this country!
As they head back to the comfortable offices, the Transition Committee must be rubbing their hands and secretly smiling with glee since they know the continuation of their dull reign only prolongs the agony of the Fifa suspension on the country. The chances of the suspension being lifted remain unclear.
We are already seeing affected teams failing to honour the league matches.
The FKF Caretaker Committee’s mandate ended on Tuesday night last week, and the tepid announcement and gazettement of the rebranding was done on Friday. There was no board in place to listen to any complaints from the clubs about fixtures.
Teams like Gor Mahia had to write directly to the ministry about their weekend game at Bukhungu Stadium, but got deafening silence and the perfidious announcement! Kariobangi Sharks also opted out of their weekend fixture.
Some people have gone to court to block the Transition Committee from taking office.
We doubt if this will help but we leave it to the courts to give direction. We foresee a bleak future for Kenyan football.
When the five weeks elapse, we won’t be surprised if the team gets more time!
