NOC-K dissolution was long overdue

It was long overdue. The disbanding of the National Olympics Committee of Kenya by Cabinet Secretary Hassan Wario sounded like sweet music to the ears of many Kenyans.

Why it took the minister too long to make this move is what we find perplexing. He had to wait until cudgels had been raised to his own head before he could act as expected. For long, we have deftly swept our sports management fiasco under the carpets and left free the poisonous posse that comfortably sits on the shoulders of our athletes and expect them to run and win medals at the same time.

The Rio Olympics were successful for Kenya as we we bagged six gold medals, six silver medals, and one bronze - marking the most wins of any African team at the Games. Kenya came in 15th globally in medals, and was second only to the United States in track and field.

This success was however marred by the most embarrassing scandals and frustrations to ever dog our sportsmen and sports women.

A senior official was sent home over doping claims; the official kit sponsor Nike was irked by the fact that the uniforms meant for the athletes were pilfered; some athletes nearly missed travelling to Brazil because the officials never organised for their tickets; a sprinter was barred from competing over an accreditation mishap; a sprint coach was sent back for worming himself into a breakfast table at the Olympic village, donning an athlete’s accreditation badge; joyriders and mistresses went on a shopping spree, taking over the places reserved for athletes. It was Sodom and Gomorrah.

Unlike other countries, where there was fanfare as their athletes jetted back home, ours was a small time affair. Only the families of the athletes had the courage to welcome home their loved ones. Even the shameless people from NOC-K had no stomach to show their ugly faces at the airport. Our sports people too, were not ready to come home to fanfare after the bad treatment in the hands of the NOC-L officials.

Yet, it is not the first time that these blundering administrators have messed up our Olympic teams. They are used to it and they actually enjoy tormenting our athletes.

During the 2012 London Olympics, they made life hell for the athletes and in the end, our performance was dismal. At the time, the president asked for a report from these same moles.

They dug up a lot of trivialities, padded them up into one useless document and presented the same to the president. They managed to bore him out of their tails.

The whole thing was left and they tittered with mirth. This time round, they cannot be let go easily. They were bound to repeat their folly and they did it with impunity bordering on insubordination.

They have shamed the country enough and it is now time that all of them go to court and be sent to prison where they can atone for all their misdeeds and un-patriotism to this country.

This is the way to act. All sports federations in this country have had the misfortune of only attracting the worst amongst us. Even sports like hockey, swimming, boxing, rugby, basketball and judo have seen constant erosion of their growth once they fell into the hands of bandits, whose only aim is to ‘eat’ what there is in the coffers.

Once the so-called officials of ‘fringe sports’ find their way into NOC-K, they stick there like ticks. They then create cartels that keep them perpetually in control of everything.

It does not matter that they may be ousted from the federation that sponsored them to NOC-K, they stay at the helm.

We know that the International Olympics Committee is soon going to dangle their threats to Kenya. We must stand firm by our decision and risk everything but clean up our sports.

In the same vein, the minister should be bold enough to take action against other bungling sports bodies like Kenya Swimming Federation.

In this way, we shall be able to free our sports from the stranglehold of leeches and tough pests that bedevil us.