Otieno responds to Nyamweya’s strong statement against FKF

Sam Nyamweya has openly stated he will lead the fight against those who have taken Kenyan football from the masses.

The former Football Kenya Federation (FKF) president says “cartels” have ruined the beautiful game and he will strive to make sure they are removed from leading the sport in the country.

“Dear family as we look back and reflect at the football landscape, we ushered in the last decade by liberating our football from the control of a Limited Liability Company named and styled Football Kenya Limited which had deceitfully taken the beautiful game in Kenya from the masses,” Nyamweya explained in a statement obtained by Goal.

“I offered myself to lead a majority of the football family who had been locked out of the game by the stroke of a pen.

“We together Liberated the beautiful game and handed over the leadership and control back to the masses, the grassroots and to the authentic Football Family in an all-inclusive election that was stakeholders centred, Fifa driven and Government-backed.

“The greatest beneficiary of the First Liberation being the grassroots football, for the first time in the history of our nation, clubs from the sub-branches had a direct say and voted in their leaders in an all-inclusive election in 2011.”

The statement continued: “A decade later we find ourselves in a similar situation though not against a limited liability Company but a battle to wrestle the beautiful game from the control and dominance of a cartel that has ruined the beautiful game in our beloved nation Kenya.

“I, therefore, make a clarion call to the Football Family, the FKF Sub Branches, Clubs, Coaches, Referees, Players, Fans to join me in ushering in the Second and final Liberation of the game we all love the beautiful game of Football.

“The Second Liberation as it was with the first Liberation will not be easy but will call for men and women of character and resolve, to stand up against threats, manipulation, intimidation, and enticement through the money function.

“Our strength is in our unity of purpose for the total Liberation of the beautiful game and for the benefit of the current and future generation of our players, coaches, referees, match commissars, referees assessors, instructors, administrators, and the football family as a whole.

“As we did in 2011, we can again in 2020.”

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Kenyan football will face a stern test in the new year with elections for the national office set to take place. Fifa has also ordered the elections to be held by the end of February after the cancellation of the exercise by the local Sports Tribunal.

Goal spoke to FKF CEO Barry Otieno for his response to Nyamweya’s statement.

“We will win the elections by a landslide. We have done nothing wrong and during our time football has improved as we managed to take the senior team to the Afcon finals in Egypt, reached the Cecafa third play-off and also the Women’s team won the Cecafa title in Tanzania. Our record is there to be seen,” Otieno told Goal.