Ailing Ulinzi Stars coach Robert Matano cries for help

Robert Matano, a larger than life figure in Kenyan football, is bedridden and in desperate need of medical assistance.

For the last few months, Matano has been in and out of hospital with various ailments. He was eventually admitted at the Coptic Hospital on August 28.

His kidneys were failing fast and he was put on a dialysis machine immediately pending further tests to ascertain the extent of damage and to explore treatment options.

The Ulinzi Stars coach was discharged 24 hours later, but now finds himself needing at least four dialysis sessions every week to manage his condition.

It is a heart-wrenching development that his two wives Caro Walusaga and Rosemary Shikunyi would have wanted to keep private and within the family, but the huge financial implication that the situation has had on the family has forced them to issue a cry for help.

Each dialysis session costs Sh10,800, meaning that “The Lion”, as the experienced, award winning coach is popularly referred to, requires close to Sh50,000 every week to stay alive.

And even though he is the coach of a Kenya Defence Forces club, it emerges that he is not under a medical cover that caters for his current condition, and he has been left to sort out the huge growing medical bill on his own.

“Since I returned from the (East Africa) Military Games (in Rwanda) which we won, I have been unwell. I was rushed to hospital two weeks ago and was told that my kidneys were failing. I now need dialysis every week and that costs more than Sh10,800 per session. That is a very costly procedure and I cannot afford it by myself. I will do the much I can but I am requesting well-wishers to help me.

“Now I am better. I have undergone three sessions so far and the doctors say that I am stable. I will go back to hospital on Saturday ,” said Matano, who just last year underwent throat surgery to remove a tumour.

Matano, 57, is a familiar name in local sports circles. He holds a CAF A coaching licence, is the chairman of the Elite Coaches Association, and has been coaching in top flight club football for more than a decade.

He has handled Congo United, Sofapaka and Tusker, and he has won two league titles, the GOtv Shield title and the KPL Top 8 gong as well as a number of individual accolades.

So decorated is he that he is arguably regarded as one of the best local coaches currently.

Yet he continues to walk into the Coptic Hospital every week for treatment, and walk out without knowing how many more dialysis sessions he will be able to afford. And worse, what could happen if the doctors recommend an expensive kidney transplant.

“This is not easy for me. Apart from the sessions, there is also money needed for my medication, and sometimes I have to pay doctors for consultation,” he said.

Known as a fierce and vocal coach, a disciplinarian and a hilarious character in football circles, Matano now cuts a desperate figure. His eyes remain stern and fiery, but his now shrunken frame paints the picture of a man whose best days are behind him. He doesn’t say it, but he seems like one who is deeply disturbed by the neglect with which his employers and the game he loves have chosen to treat him.

“It is illegal for me to disclose the details of his contract but I know that he has a valid contract and there is a medical clause in it. Anything beyond that is confidential. He requires support not just from Ulinzi Stars, but from well-wishers as well,” Ulinzi vice chairman Major Joe Birgen stated when asked to expound on the nature of Matano’s medical over.

The Elite Coaches body and the Kenya Football Coaches Association (Kefoca) have been at loggerheads for years, but they have now come together to assist Matano.

Last Tuesday, Kefoca chairman Ricky Solomon announced that a medical fund committee had been formed to organise a funds drive for the ailing tactician. They need to raise Sh5 million to enable Matano travel to India for further treatment.

The committee members include Gilbert Selebwa, Jacob ‘Ghost’ Mulee, Francis Kimanzi, Austin Odour, Aziz Atitwa, Shedrack Ateka, Habil Nanjero, Richard Madegwa and Yakubu Ibrahim.

A mega fund raising meeting has been scheduled for October 1 at Nairobi’s 680 Hotel from 6pm where several people and football administrators have been invited to help raise funds.

Donors wishing to send their contribution can do so through Robert Matano Medical Fund, Family Bank Account No. 04600002 6261. The Pay Bill number is 811328.