Football management team plotting to ‘overthrow’ Transition Committee
The Football Kenya Federation management committee has gone a notch higher in trying to edge out the FKF Transition Committee out of local football after inviting all the topflight league clubs for a meeting on July 16 where an independent body to run the league will be formed.
The meeting is expected to be held at the Moi International Sports Center, Kasarani from 9am. In a letter copied to all the 18 clubs, the management committee chairman Robert Macharia says they will also release the new 2022/23 season fixtures and also give an update on the steps they have made in nailing a new league sponsor.
According to the letter, part of the agenda is a general update on football crisis in Kenya, an update on the progress of amending the FKF constitution, as per the FKF SGM held on June 11, and implications of Tusker not participating in the CAF/Fifa organised competitions.
The decision by the 13-member committee to head to the clubs directly and engage is being viewed as a ploy to take over the management of the game which has been under the FKF Caretaker and Transition Committees since the government disbanded the Nick Mwendwa led federation in November last year.
“The issues on the agenda are broad and lays ground for the new season and also unlocking the ban,” said Nairobi East FKF Chairman Amos Otieno who is also the Vice chairman of the FKF management committee.
A number of club chairmen confirmed having received the letter but requested not to be named fearing being seen as among those opposing the FKF Transition committee.
“As much as this committee has genuine concern and wants to take over the management of football, they should involve the transition committee. Do you expect Gor or AFC Leopards who have benefited from the government to oppose the transition committee?” posed a chairman of one of the clubs in an interview with Nation Sport.
“I support the committee but I don’t want to be mentioned as one who is behind this initiative which is being fronted. Stakeholders meetings are not bad and the agenda is worthy to be discussed because they are good but I fear I will be judged as one who is opposing the CS. I don’t want things to head that way,” said another.
Veteran football administrator and FKF Presidential aspirant Lordvick Aduda said the big issue is to work towards lifting the suspension. He said the management committee is an amorphous body since it is neither recognised by Fifa or the government and lacks the legal basis to operate.
“Can we all agree we are in a mess and put our heads together to fix this mess before the start of the next season. The management committee has no mandate to even open a bank account and what is the legal mandate will they sign sponsorship with corporates as they purport?’ questioned Aduda.
He called for sobriety saying the only way to unlock the suspension impasse by Fifa is for the government and football stakeholder to agree on the way forward and the international football governing body to relax its stand on Kenya.
However, FKF Transition Committee Major General (Rtd) Maurice Oyugi told Nation Sport that the FKF management branches officials messed up when they were working with the committee and the government will not allow them anywhere near the management of the game.
“We were with them and even attended their SGM but they are people with vested interest who are hell bent on creating confusion. They should be ignored and even the clubs they are purporting to hold a meeting will not agree with them,” said Oyugi.
“The government is already making steps in engaging Fifa and at the opportune time we will reveal the progress. That is why the FKF management committee should be ignored,” he added.