Nairobi News

The Ministry of Sports and Kenya Rugby Union are set to meet on Monday to address the latter’s financial troubles. Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba and the KRU officials will thereafter address the media at noon.

This just a day after the national Sevens team made a public appeal for financial assistance to facilitate their preparations for the Dubai Sevens and Cape Town Sevens legs of the World Rugby Sevens series.

It has also emerged that the players have not been paid their allowances for the last three months.

“Our desperate situation has now forced us to turn to you, our global community to help us in raising funds. The money raised will be split among the boys to help settle some of our pending bills – We need your assistance,” Sevens player Willy Ambaka said when he made the appeal on social media.

The desperate call caught the nation’s attention with Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna among those who have already made a pledge to support the team even as he sought answers on the matter from Sports CS Namwamba.

“I will start you off with 100k @Willyambaka. We are proud of the work you are doing despite the difficulties. I have also raised this matter in Senate and last week the matter was taken up by the relevant committee. Help is on the way, hang in there. @AbabuNamwamba hizi ni gani,” Senator Sifuna said.

Also read: Senator Edwin Sifuna donates Sh100k to broke Kenya Sevens team

This comes even after KRU entered a one-year Memorandum of Understanding with the Japanese organizations Hiraku Company Ltd, Seitoku Company Ltd and AAIC Partners Africa Ltd towards the development of Kenyan rugby through activities including but not limited to sponsorship of Kenya Cup and the national teams.

Currently, the Kenya Sevens teams sits at position 15 in the World Rugby Sevens series with one point after Hong Kong Sevens, just above Hong Kong and Uganda who are at the bottom of the table.

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