Four years ago, Football lovers breathed a sigh of relief when Nick Mwendwa a youthfull understudy of Sam Nyamweya took over at FKF.
I remember one evening during the campaigns at Sagret hotel, two brothers who are soccer enthusiasts exchanged jibes. Well Fred Arocho supporting Nick Mwendwa and Bill Arocho was for Nyamweya.
The Arocho’s exchanged friendly fire as Bill finally retorted : ” there is nothing like team change here, replacing Nyamweya with Nick Mwendwa is no change, fasten your belts for status quo” he said.
Today FKF is staring at a bleak future with Nick and Nyamweya trying to outdo each other as their handlers cheer the mess football Kenya finds itself in.
The SDT ruling has opened a pandoras box and FIFA’s wrath is lurking. A ban is inevitable. Likely inevitable.
Adel Amrouche’s case a recipe for trouble
The Court of Arbitration for Sports(CAS), sitting in Lausanne Switzerland, made a ruling that FKF pay former Harambee Stars coach Adel Amrouche Sh106 million for wrongful dismissal.
The deadline for paying Adel was 11 March 2020 and Fifa was strict that failure by Kenya to pay would lead to Harambee Stars being kicked out of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
Should ” the Mwendwa led office” fail to pay (which they have failed anyway). Kenya is on the verge of being kicked out of the 2022 WC qualifiers which will also attract a ban from Fifa from all football activities sanctioned by FIFA.
A ban would mean that all our clubs, and all our football teams – men and women will not take part in any international football event. Our players will be barred from joining foreign clubs and our referees will not officiate any international match at club or national level.
Away from Amrouche’s case, on 17th Ohaga (SDT) ruled that Fifa forms a Normalization Committee to guide the electoral process, a pandora box has been opened, similar to that of 2010, when the then Sports Minister Dr Paul Otuoma appointed a seven-member board to manage Harambee Stars for two years.
The Board had Dr Evans Kidero as chairman then a CEO of Mumias Sugar Company Limited, Vimal Shah, Mugo Kibati, Jack Oguda, Gordon Oluoch, Stepheny Isaboke and the then Kenya Rugby Union chairman Richard Omwela. The difference is that the then Board drew its mandate and authority from the Government while the Normalization Committee is a product of a Court ruling.
We are at crossroads, Nick Mwendwa led team and the Sam Nyamweya led wing should wake up and smell the coffee. While the current administration may have its problems, the era of Sam Nyamweya was a great error full of pain, anguish and agony to our football.
The wounds are yet to heal and it would serve no public good to have Mr. Nyamweya back at the helm neither does it make Nick the Joshua we have all been waiting for.
