Reliance on State funds fuelled Rio Olympics mess

Over-reliance on government funding for the Olympic Games may have led to the big number joyriders to the Rio Games, the probe committee has revealed.

Since the Ministry of Sports gave over 90 per cent of the Sh600 million budget, top officials lobbied for positions to travel to Rio.

Although the details of the Rio 2016 Probe Committee report remain a closely guarded secret, the ministry’s presentation before a parliamentary committee investigating the Rio debacle revealed that over-reliance on State funding by Kenya’s sports organisations has left them exposed to arm-twisting.

Sports Minister Hassan Wario is expected to release the report next week.

On Saturday, Kenyans took to social media to urge Dr Wario to make public the probe committee’s findings. The report is also expected to touch on Kenya’s dealings with Nike, which many see as skewed in favour of the American sportswear giant.

Probe committee chairman Paul Ochieng, who is a long-serving dean of students at Strathmore University in Nairobi, said he was happy with the people who heeded the committee’s summons to give evidence.

As a result, one ministry official has reimbursed nearly Sh1 million she received but did not travel for the Games.

“Waiting for full report and actions thereof,” Caleb Chemirmir posted on Facebook.

Several Kenyans on social media were pessimistic, with most saying nothing will be done about the findings.

“I thought you were investigating Dr Wario... how do you hand over the report to him. Never heard of an insane thing as this,” said Jim Onyango on Facebook, in response to news that the report had been handed over to the Sports CS.