An open letter to President Uhuru Kenyatta
Dear Mr President,
As you get sworn into office for your second and final term, you will realize that the country is more polarized than ever. We are a people divided along ethnic and political lines. These fault lines are deeper and it will require your sense of benevolence to mend the rift.
Apart from that Mr President, I want to trust that you are aware of the enormity of the task you face more so on the sports docket.
Mr President, being a sports enthusiast, I’m more concerned by the deplorable conditions of our sports facilities. As you may be aware, just two months ago, our country, under your leadership, lost out on the 2018 African Nation Championship (Chan) hosting rights.
Your Excellency, this loss could have been averted had your administration made good its pledge to build five new ultra-modern stadia in your first term.
Mr President, while I appreciate that running a government has its own challenges, making subtle efforts, let’s say building one or two would have been a good return. Doing so would have not only camouflaged us from the brazen verbal attacks and tongue lash from our neighbours resulting from the embarrassing loss of this golden opportunity, but also given the country a platform through which to launch bids for future tournaments.
Your Excellency, a look at the past does not make for a good reading either. In 1996, we lost out on a similar chance when the Confederation of African Football (CAF) stripped us of the hosting rights of the African Cup of Nations finals owing to lack of befitting stadia.
Twenty years down the line, we are still stuck on the same ‘pedestal’. Mr President, what makes this more painful is that our junior neighbours, Rwanda, a country with a low GDP compared to our bulging economy successfully hosted the Chan tourney in 2016.
Your Excellency, you and I know that hosting a tournament of such magnitude would have not only created enormous business opportunities for our people, but also marketed our county to Africa and the rest of the world. Therefore, as you settle into office for a final term, I make a humble submission to you: With nothing to lose on the political table, kindly Mr President, fasten your seat belt and get the job done.
Deplorable
Our sports facilities are an eye sore. The Nyayo National Stadium is in deplorable condition and so are many others I would not want to even mention.
Even our fabled Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarani, in which you’d be taking the oath of office this afternoon, does not meet the international standards our people have been accustomed to believe.
Sir, I believe that with sufficient good will, you may not build four or five stadia you had promised, but you can at least deliver on two. That, for us, in the sports fraternity, would be good enough.
As you settle into office, you’ll also realize that our sports federations are a mess. Years back, under the leadership of then Sports Cabinet Secretary and your number one crusader from Budalangi, Ababu Namwamba, we enacted the Sports Act which was expected to clean the mess and herald a new dawn in an industry that has hitherto been marred by wrangles, mismanagement and bad governance.
Let down
Though some efforts towards establishing accountability have been made, a lot still needs to be done. This is partly so because the man you gave the job four years ago, Dr Hassan Wario, let you down totally. He let the sports fraternity down. He let the country down.
Though it is not in my place to suggest or lecture you on whom to appoint as the new boss in this ministry, but with reasoned judgment, I implore you not to even think of giving him another chance; not in sports, and not in any other ministry either for he has embarrassed our esteemed flag.
Under him, our sports witnessed some of the most damaging scandals that tarnished our image and standing amongst nations.
From the Rio fiasco, incessant doping scandals, Harambee Stars bungled trip to Cape Verde, to missed Chan opportunity, your general, Dr Wario, failed to offer leadership.
With the above considerations Mr President, it is therefore my humble submission that you give the poor Dr Wario the boot. And while at it, you must be aware that in sports we invest our emotions so kindly give us a new a Cabinet Secretary who understands the docket, a hands-on sober-minded and development conscious leader, and above all one who will vigorously market our sports potential to the outside world.
Lastly, Mr President, our youths across the length and breadth of this great nation are highly talented. They are crying out for proper government driven academies which would nurture talent.
World over Your Excellency, sports is a business. It is multi-billionaire dollar industry and I believe that if your administration embraced a practical approach aimed at producing some of the finest talent, there is no reason why we cannot top the world.
Germany, a country you visited not so long ago, put down these strategies through their Sports Ministry with a conscious goal of being on top of the world and look where they are today!
In- tray
As I sign off Sir, I want to hope that your administration will take a moment and reflect on my plea and that in your wisdom, act accordingly .From building of stadia, setting in motion vibrant academies, fighting the doping menace to finding an able Sports Cabinet Secretary, your in tray may be full but they are surmountable odds if the spirit is willing.
The writer is the Sports Editor, Radio and Citizen Digital- Royal Media Services, and the reigning Print Sports Journalist of the Year (2017, 2015)
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