More is needed to change Kenyan sport than mere photo ops
President William Ruto (left), Sports CS Ababu Namwamba and AFC Leopards chairman Dan Shikanda walk to the pitch after the Football Kenya Federation Premier League match between AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia at Nyayo National Stadium on May 14, 2023.
Working with the two biggest local clubs as collaborators is essential, but it inevitably turns poisonous
As a young-looking, lovable CS, Ababu Namwamba has much more work to do in separating himself from his (many of them poor performing) predecessors
What these clubs need is an environment that allows them to make a living out of the game
Think of it as the administrational equivalent of a flight to safety. Just as investors trade equities for government bonds when markets tank, so Sports Cabinet Secretaries have developed a short cut that allows them to do the bare minimum while remaining in the good books of the sports fraternity.
For local football, which is riddled by corruption, ineptitude and bad governance, the strategy is simple: Attend major games every season such as last weekend’s Nairobi derby, invite the President, smile for the cameras, throw in some Sh1 million at those two struggling teams and voila! Everyone goes home satisfied. It has happened since I started following local sport a decade ago, and it happened again last weekend. And that, right there, is the problem.
