March 14 - At the Kenya Football Group (KFG) meeting yesterday, our clubs decided to ask the government to lock out all present KFF officials from the KFF elections for gross abuse of their positions and public funds and to lock up those who broke Kenyan laws.

All Kenyans all equal under the law. That includes KFF officials. Our government should not let KFF officials break our laws because FIFA supports and protects them. Our country is a sovereign State and a member of the United Nations. Our government should not give in to intimidation and threats from FIFA, an international NGO based in Zurich operating under Swiss law. FIFA officials and Swiss lawyers should not dictate how our country is run.

Our government should prosecute KFF officials who broke our laws. Our clubs specifically call on our government to urgently take these steps:

 

1.  The Anti-Corruption Police Unit should present the findings of the investigations it started in April 2003 on KFF corruption and the U17 cheating scandal and hand over all evidence to the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission for urgent action.

2.  The Principal Immigration Officer with the Attorney General should take immediate legal action against the KFF officials responsible for the U17 cheating scandal, especially KFF Secretary General Hussein Swaleh, his Deputy Peter Angwenyi, National Treasurer Mohamed Hatimy, U17 Team Manager Ampher Apidi and Head Coach Tom Olaba who are all named in official documents and legal affidavits as being directly involved.

3.  The Minister of Gender, Sports, Culture and Social Services with the Registrar should de-register and ban all KFF officials until they comply with Articles XIII and XV of the KFF Constitution and provide their audited accounts for 2000-03 to the Ministry, the KNSC and member clubs. The ban should include all KFF Branch officials and Governors until they account for the KFF deductions, youth development levy and women’s football levy which they collected from all matches for the last four years.

4.  The Registrar of Societies with the Attorney General should de-register the KFF for breaking over half of the 21 Articles in the KFF Constitution and violating the Societies Act, especially on keeping an updated register of members, keeping proper accounts, giving notice on any change of officers and submitting annual returns to the Registrar.
 

Our clubs support the legal action by Reunion, a KFF founding member, against the selfish actions by KFF officials to impose a new KFF Constitution which sidelines the member clubs, coaches, players and referees from any significant role in KFF elections and decision-making.

A key democratic principle is governance “by the people, of the people and for the people”. The new KFF Constitution secretly made by KFF officials represents governance “by KFF officials, of KFF officials and for KFF officials”.

While our government courageously pursues a “zero tolerance” policy against corruption, KFF officials secretly pursue a “zero tolerance” policy against transparency and accountability.

A cleanup of KFF corruption is long overdue. Our clubs, coaches, players and referees and their many dependent family members have already paid a high price for the delay.

As there is already so much evidence for taking legal action, our clubs appeal to our government to act urgently to ban and prosecute corrupt KFF officials in order to protect the dignity and integrity of our sport and our country.

Contact
Jack Oguda, Acting Managing Director
KENYAN FOOTBALL GROUP LTD (KFG)
Riadha House, Box 5350, Nairobi 00506, Kenya
Tel 254-722-741411 Fax 254-20-583055