Ababu Namwamba: Hands-on lawyer out to fix stinking mess in Kenya’s sports

The CS discusses the recently launched “Talanta Hela” project, the fate of other sports including Safari Rally, rugby and cricket, and his ties with the two political bigwigs, President Ruto and opposition chief Raila Odinga. Below are excerpts of the interview. 

Q: Let us start with athletics, where we are world beaters. What is the status of things and how prepared are we for the Olympics?

A: Athletics is the jewel in Kenya’s sporting crown. I applaud all our greats, both past and present, for maintaining our nation’s incredible world conquering heritage, the latest being the mind-blowing heroics of Faith Kipyegon in Florence, Italy and Paris, France. As we say in Swahili, safari ya kesho hupangwa leo. To avoid pitfalls that have afflicted Team Kenya at key global events, this time we are on top of things in timely planning. I tasked the National Olympics Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) to get me a roadmap and budget, which they duly did. Three weeks ago we retreated to discuss the details, and today I can confidently tell Kenyans that our Roadmap to Paris 2024 is ready and shortly I will be gazetting the team that will lead the country to Paris. 

Coe: Ruto's assurance on war against doping satisfying 

Q: How rampant is the doping problem in athletics, and how are you addressing it?

A: When I took office seven months ago, Kenya was actually on the verge of being banned by World Athletics for the unacceptably high number of cases. I had to move with haste to engage World Athletics President, Lord Sebastian Coe, who also visited Kenya in January. To forestall the ban, we agreed on a comprehensive plan to confront the doping menace. I hosted a national multi-agency stakeholders forum last November, where the plan was developed. We committed US$5 million (KSh700 million) annually for the next five years to bankroll this plan, whose implementation we have handed over to a multi-agency team led by the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya working closely with the World Anti-Doping Agency’s Athletics Integrity Unit. We are on track. This is a war we must win.  

Kenya has established a longstanding heritage of competing and winning clean, from Wilson Kiprugut Chumo, winner of Kenya’s first ever Olympics medal (bronze at Tokyo ‘64) to Kipchoge Keino, Paul Tergat, Catherine Ndereba, John Ngugi, Wilfred Bungei, David Rudisha…the list is endless. Our current stars like Faith Kipyegon, Emmanuel Wanyonyi and Ferdinand Omanyala are continuing to demonstrate that we have what it takes to win clean. And for the criminal syndicate facilitating this vile practice, we are coming down on you like a brick wall. We will not allow a few criminal elements to soil Kenya’s proud sporting pedigree and heritage.

Q: Besides Coe, you also met Fifa president Gianni Infantino over Kenya’s ban. How did you manoeuvre through this one?

A: The Fifa suspension put Kenyan football in limbo, destroying that whole economic ecosystem that supports a wide range of livelihoods. Players, coaches, referees, security, health personnel, support staff – the whole range of dependents on football activities were hit hard! And of course Kenya was locked out of the entire international football circuit, with devastating implications. Our referees also missed out on consideration for the Qatar World Cup as well as Afcon. This dire scenario headlined the total mess in sports and that is why I set the speedy lifting of the Fifa suspension as my number one priority, which I pulled off in exactly one month, 30 swift days upon assuming office. I took office on October 28, the suspension was lifted on November 28, 2022.

How exactly did we do it? Quintessential diplomacy riding on deft balancing interspersed with hard-nosed negotiations. Steel in velvet gloves! I directly engaged Fifa President Gianni Infantino, whom I met in Qatar, and made it clear to the local football mandarins that their business as usual must cede ground to my business unusual. Long story short, our football has returned, although badly tattered, bruised and limping. 

Q: Yet still, you have set in motion plans for Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda’s joint bid to host Afcon 2027. Are we really ready for Africa’s biggest football festival? 

A: The historic East Africa Pamoja bid, the official branding of the joint bid, is perfectly on track. I am actually talking to you now from Kampala, where we are gathered as part of our ongoing joint seamless coordination to ensure absolute coherence and synergy. This joint bid is inspired by our vision of deploying the power of sports for regional integration and shared prosperity of all the peoples of East Africa.

Read: President Ruto receives Kenya's joint 2027 Afcon bid

Q: Going by past experiences, though, including 1996, when we approached the bid rather casually, what is the level of our preparedness this time around?

A: Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it! This is a refrain by Winston Churchill, paraphrasing philosopher George Santayana, in a 1948 speech to the House of Commons. Trust me, we are good students of history and we have learnt well from past Afcon foibles. We are not dropping this ball.

Q: What is the current status of our stadia, and do they meet the acceptable international standards?

A: Our stadia are certainly not in the best of shapes, the result of long-term neglect coupled with incoherent and haphazard attempts at development that have bequeathed the country more white elephants than international stadia. As we speak, Kenya does not have a single stadium that ticks the essential Fifa and CAF (Confederation of African Football) boxes. However, we have developed a coherent Masterplan for deliberate and intentional sports and arts infrastructure development. Our Afcon ’27 bid will benefit big time from this strategic visionary planning. 

Q: As Sports CS, allow me to draw your attention to the dilapidated state of the Busia Stadium, in your home county. Don’t you think charity begins at home?

A: Busia Stadium is a county responsibility. And like many stadia across Kenya, the deplorable state of this facility is the result of years of neglect by those concerned, primarily the county government. But those are bygones. The good news is that Busia is included in our revolutionary Sports and Arts Infrastructure Masterplan, and transformation is coming. Busia is a fountain of talent, the county that has given Kenya a Uefa Champions League winner in McDonald Mariga, the only Kenyan player to grace the English Premier League in Victor Wanyama, and the only Kenyan, indeed African, winner of an Olympics boxing gold medal in Robert Wangila Napunyi. The list is long. Busia County certainly deserves a fitting sports arena to honour this great sporting pedigree.

Read: Ababu drops Radull, Churchill, Azziad from Talanta Hela team ahead of launch

Q: Victor Wanyama has set up a sports academy in the same county. How does your ministry plan to leverage on this?

A: I am super proud of Victor and his family, whose patriarch, Noah Wanyama ‘Landmawe’ is himself a Kenyan football legend in his own right. I am in touch with Victor and his family and we fully support the academy, with which we want to synergise the development of talent in Busia County, western Kenya and indeed the whole country. 

Q: President Ruto recently presided over the formal launch of “Talanta Hela”. Is  the project a panacea to young people’s unemployment problem?

A: 'Talanta Hela' is the most revolutionary, no doubt most consequential policy frame for sports and the creatives in Kenyan history. In those two ordinary Swahili words Talanta (talent) and Hela (money) lies the antidote to what has ailed sports and the creative industry forever. Talanta Hela is already monetising and turning talent into sustainable livelihoods in a manner never seen before in this country. It started with winners of the Talanta Hela logo design competition, won by Job Ogweno. The creatives earned handsomely from that. Then there are the Kenya National Theatre (KNT) and the film (Kalasha) awards, which we have monetised.

In sports, we now have a brand new reward scheme, with Faith Kipyegon and Ferdinand Omanyala as the first beneficiaries. The Scheme will officially be unveiled soon by President William Ruto in a ceremony that will see us reward many more sportsmen and women, including team sport players. 

Q: Why did you revoke the appointments of Carol Radull, Daniel Ndambuki, Dennis Itumbi and Azziad Nasenya and others in the Talanta Hela Council barely hours before the project’s launch?

A: 'Talanta Hela' is too important to be undermined by negative energy, bile, malicious intent and frivolous litigation. They were placing a revolutionary initiative at the risk of being embroiled in endless vexatious and frivolous court battles. I moved to shield Talanta Hela from this whole brouhaha of hot air. Talanta Hela is rooted in The Plan (Kenya Kwanza Manifesto) and the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda, a pivotal legacy initiative. 

Q: Fair enough. Let us switch focus to the Safari Rally, where there are claims that officials have embezzled public funds. What strategies are in place to ensure the sport remains in the World Rally Championships circuit? 

A: I inherited myriad pains and migraines in this sporting arena. But never mind, I am sorting them out one after the other. There is a new Sheriff in town, new order and fresh style. Just trust the process. 

Read: Safari Rally driver 'defies' orders from Ruto security, gives president speed scare

Q: Kenya played in the semi-finals of the 2003 Cricket World Cup and was knocking on the doors of the Test-playing club, when things suddenly took a turn. The national Sevens rugby team also sparkled in the World Series for more than a decade, the highlight of which was the 2016 Main Cup victory in Singapore. What are your plans for these sports?

A: They are important games too that have suffered years of neglect and mismanagement. We are going back to the basics to get them back to elite level. We have fresh leadership. I have also held talks with Herbert Mensah, President of Rugby Africa. Kenya will bounce back stronger.

Q: You are a career politician, which is why l wish to ask you about your closeness to the President and former Premier. 

A: I am privileged to share a very special connection and history with both President Ruto and former PM Raila. One sunny morning in April, 2003, William walked into my law firm office on State House Avenue and convinced me to get into politics. The rest is water under the bridge. This year we celebrate 20 long years of friendship, respect and comradeship that have extended across multiple political epochs, from going to battle side-by-side in the famous ODM formation of 2007, to serving together in the Kibaki-Raila coalition Cabinet, to now rolling out the pivotal Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda under his stewardship as Commander-in-Chief. In February 2022, I resigned from the Uhuru Kenyatta’s government to fully support William Ruto’s presidential bid. He is my beloved brother, respected comrade, venerated mentor and cherished President who enjoys my absolute and unequivocal support, respect, loyalty and fidelity. 

And from 2004, when we first engaged politically, Raila Odinga has been a political mentor of immense impact and a living manifestation of the famous spirit of his father, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, which I first experienced as a young high school student when I read his stirring Not Yet Uhuru literary masterpiece. As a young man, I was elected to Parliament twice on his ODM Party ticket, and rose to serve as both Parliamentary Secretary and Secretary-General of the party. This gave me the opportunity to serve as co-chair of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Constitution Review that helped deliver the 2010 Constitution, a feat that earned me the national honour of Elder of the Golden Heart conferred by President Mwai Kibaki in December, 2012. Raila also nominated me for appointment by President Kibaki as Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs in the coalition government. I therefore have no hesitation acknowledging Raila as a political father whom I greatly respect and honour. 

Read: Ababu: Gov't committed to renovating Kip Keino Stadium

Q: Has it ever crossed your mind to get your two friends, who are now sworn political enemies, to the negotiation table?

A: It would immeasurably gladden my heart, soul and mind to see my two great friends and mentors, true colossi of the Kenyan political landscape, close ranks on matters that are in the best interest of the people of Kenya, away from parochial jingoism. William Ruto and Raila Odinga in sync, playing tune Kenya in symphonious harmony, is one orchestra I believe every well-meaning Kenyan would enjoy and cheer. However, we must wean our politics off internecine wars in perpetuity. For this to happen, the government must be afforded the space to govern accountably, while the opposition must enjoy the constitutional liberty to robustly oversight responsibly. 

Q: President Ruto recently mentioned that you wanted to be assigned a docket other than sports, but he maintained that he knew better where to place members of his team. What is your reaction?

A: It is true the President talked to me before naming the Cabinet. He told me the Ministry of Youth Affairs, the Arts and Sports was a totally revamped space, with a new architecture. He then disclosed that he wanted me to head the Ministry because of three reasons. One, drawing on my diplomatic experience and global networks built over the years, to rebuild the trust of international institutions like Fifa, CAF, International Olympics Committee and World Athletics in Kenya, and to mobilise global partnerships around the promotion of the youth agenda, sports and the creative economy. 

Two, he asked me to use my training and experience as an attorney to drive revolutionary legal and policy reforms across the three segments of the Ministry: youth, sports and the creative economy. Finally, he reminded me that I had served well in the same docket at the tail-end of the Kibaki-Raila coalition government, and during that brief stint, I had managed to get the Sports Act enacted, the National Youth Council actualised and reforms at the National Youth Service instituted. With humility and gratitude, I accepted the task my President placed before me. Looking back on the seven months since, I must say my boss was wise in his decision.