Like AFC, Gor has been guilty of bungling transfers

In 1980s as Gor Mahia was riding high in the league, one of the most exciting players ever to don K’Ogalo’s green jersey John ‘Zangi’ Okello did the unimaginable by crossing over to the Ingwe den.

The over excited AFC Leopards fans hurriedly gave him a Bukusu name — Wanyonyi.

This year, another Gor player — Timonah Wanyonyi — followed Zangi’s path and decamped to Ingwe. Whereas in the latter case the decision was quite legal, in the former there were claims of some underhand deals with allegations that Zangi had sabotaged the club with a promise of payment before hightailing to Leopards.

Of course this was never proven but anecdotal evidence shows that Leopards’ then chairman Alfred Sambu was a man who spared no effort to ensure that the club had its way.

Nicknamed Abiola after the billionaire Nigerian businessman and later presidential candidate Chief Moshood Abiola, Sambu was loved and hated in equal measure depending on which side of the stadium you sat.

Suffice to say, Zangi’s — or Wanyonyi’s — brilliant star started dimming while at Leopards. At the time of death, the alcohol-addicted Zangi was back at Gor as a fan singing his heart out from the Russian side of the stands.

Upon moving to Leopards, Wanyonyi gushed out velvety words about Ingwe swearing by the gods of football that all his life he had dreamt of playing for the club.

Forget the fact that he was a darling of the Green Army who christened him ‘Jehovah’ after the famous Bukusuland prophet by the name Jehovah Wanyonyi.

The story would have ended there had Wanyonyi and Leopards lived happily thereafter.

SIGN-ON FEE

But a teary Wanyonyi would soon claim that he had been duped into jumping ship. Apparently, some football nabobs at Ingwe wasn’t keen on releasing the young man’s sign-on fee.

My friend Peter Leftie has written at length about the opaque signing and releasing system at Ingwe.

However, I believe this is a problem that has affected Gor Mahia as well. It is unpatriotic, nay criminal, to see how the club is haemorrhaging players.

I have heard some officials say that they cannot stand in the way of players who want to move on. But my question is, did we elect the officials to run the club or act as morticians to see its death?

If in doubt hear what outgoing coach Bobby Williamson said at the end of the fiasco that is the K’Ogalo campaign at the Cecafa Club Championships: “When you look at this team it is made up of only four players who won the league and it is more on a transition period.”

Is there hope for our beloved Mighty Mahia? God help us.

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