AFC office is anything but accountable

President Uhuru Kenyatta (left) shakes hands with AFC Leopards chairman Dan Shikanda during a breakfast meeting at State House, Nairobi on March 9, 2020.

Photo credit: PSCU

What you need to know:

  • Clubs that are opaque in their management are the ones that ignores the law or replaces the known one with the law of the jungle.
  • This is exactly the situation at AFC Leopards. There is nobody who can legally be held accountable because the current office has not been recognised by the government.

Our club officials have ignored to follow directives given by the Registrar of Sports.

Rather than act as instructed, our National Executive Council has ignored the Registrar of Sports, yet the Sports Act 2019 is very clear that clubs should align themselves to the provisions of this piece of law.

Further, AFC Leopards did not follow the advise given by the Sports Dispute Tribunal (SDT) not to hold election on June last year until grievances given by some candidates who had been locked out of the exercise were addressed.

Polls however proceeded and the Dan Shikanda-led team made their way to the office.

The upshot. Up till now the Sports Registrar has not registered the new office. Consequently, potential sponsors have been reluctant to do business with this office.

Since the current office lacks checks and balances, it has been difficult for the club fans to hold them accountable.

Recently President Uhuru Kenyatta commissioned the new club bus and also gave the team an undisclosed sum of money to pay pending allowances. During the ceremony held at State House last month, Uhuru also declared his support for the clubs’ bid to construct a modern stadium.

He further praised the Kenyan Premier League side for its role in inspiring young players in the country since 1964.

The function was attended by Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed and her Devolution counterpart Eugene Wamalwa, the Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua, AFC Leopards patron Tim Wanyonyi, who is also the MP for Westlands, club chairman Dan Shikanda and Nelson Sechere from African Union who donated the new 52-seater luxury coach to the club.

This function was not open to the press. However, AFC Leopards’ being a club owned by the public should have given full disclosure of how much the President gave.

I am made to understand that the club was given Sh12 million.

For the good of the team, we have not been vocal about the lack of accountability with this current office.

There is something this office should not take for granted. They should account for all the money they receive.

If players can go for four months without pay any cent of revenue should be disclosed.

Clubs that are opaque in their management are the ones that ignores the law or replaces the known one with the law of the jungle.

This is exactly the situation at AFC Leopards. There is nobody who can legally be held accountable because the current office has not been recognised by the government.