Courting Fifa wrath
A cross section of stakeholders have faulted the decision by former Sports Journalist Milton Nyakundi to move to court and stop the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Anual General Meeting (AGM) that was due on Saturday.
In a ruling certified as urgent and challenging the legality of the federation to convene the event, Lady Justice Olga Sewe set the hearing date for Monday (today).
“This matter coming up on March 15 for direction on the notice of motion dated March 13 before Lady Justice Olga Sewe, upon considering the said application together with its supporting affidavit and the annexures thereto; “…That the application be and is hereby certified as urgent. That the same be served forthwith on the respondents and other parties for hearing on March 18.”
She added: “That in the interim stay of the said Annual General Meeting of the Football Kenya Federation be and is hereby granted pending hearing inter parties of the application.”
FKF presidential aspirant Omondi Aduda believes the decision by the court will delay the process of FKF holding elections as planned later this year.
“I think we need to be serious about the manner in which we want to patronise football leadership. The courts should expedite the hearing and determination of all the matters so that the electoral process begins,” Aduda told People Sports, adding:
“There is likelihood of total confusion looming ahead in the not too long a period hence the need everything done according to the law together with the attendant Rules and Regulations.”
Tom Alila, who is a former FKF NEC, and among those keen to vie for the top seat called on Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba to move with speed and appoint a normalization committee.
“It is now clear that FKF will not be able to conduct elections latest October 2024 as per the FIFA directives because the mechanisms of having Electoral Board in place six months prior won’t be met. This means the only remedy to Kenyan football is a normalisation committee. It’s high time the CS Ababu (Namwamba) should engage FIFA to form normalisation committee as soon as possible,” said Alila.
Veteran administrator Sam Nyamweya echoed Aduda’s sentiments that moving to court will bring confusion into the election exercise.
“It is already clear that we are facing confusion now that we have a case in court, I think we need to have a clean exercise and I hope the court will give a ruling on the same as agreed on Monday (today) so the process to hold the elections is not delayed,” said Nyamweya.
Embakasi East Secretary General Dickson Doyo said Nyakundi had sort asylum in USA in 2022 and no longer had the interest of Kenyan football at heart and should not be taken seriously because he was not even a member of the federation.
Due to the contentious elections agenda which was part of the AGM, signs of mouting pressure started manifesting earlier this week when FKF differed with Murang’a Seal on presidential aspirant Hussein Mohammed’s eligibility to represent the club in the meeting.
FKF said the Extreme Sports CEO Mohammed is not a member of SEAL, hence ineligible to attend but the club through founder Robert Macharia insisted he is their member and would attend the AGM.
Tension was heightened on Friday when 76 delegates of FKF threatened to kick out Mohammed from the AGM if he was to attend the cancelled AGM, underlining it was an affair of the genuine members only.
The meeting was expected to ratify the controversial FKF Electoral Code (2020) which was part of the resolutions passed by FKF’s National Executive Committee (NEC) on January 6, 2024, set dates for the upcoming elections as well as discuss the financial report.
