Aston Lukoye
Nick Mwendwa resumed his duties as the FKF President after stepping aside after court charges on corruption allegations and the first order of business was to seek a remedy for match-fixing that has been ailing the FKF Premier League and other local leagues.
Mwendwa stepped aside to allow sleuths to investigate his case but late last month, a magistrate in a Kiambu court dismissed all the charges citing them as “defective, unlawful and unconstitutional” allowing him to resume his duties as the head of the federation.
Accordingly, the President and his counterpart Barry Otieno, alongside the Permanent Secretary for sports, Jonathan Mueke, FKF President, Nick Mwendwa, met the National Assembly’s Departmental Sports and Culture committee to seek a remedy on the match-fixing.
This comes after the FKF alongside other football stakeholders busted a plot to manipulate an FKF Premier League game pitting Nairobi City Stars and Sofapaka through the help of former Kakamega Homeboys midfielder, Festus Omukoto.
Three suspects were arrested during this incident, arraigned in court, and released on cash bail. The three were Russian, Akhiad Kubiev, Kenyan Martin Munga Mutua, and Ugandan Bernard Navendi.
It is this incident among others in the past that necessitated the move by the FKF to approach the parliamentary committee hoping to lobby for legislation that will restore sanity in the game.
During the meeting, the FKF president urged the legislators to enact a law that would criminalize match-fixing and ensure that offenders are legally liable.
“When football is manipulated it ruins the authenticity of the game which drives fans away. If you look at it this way, it’s clear that match-fixing is a massive threat to football as a sport and an industry,” said Nick Mwendwa.
The Permanent Secretary Jonathan Mueke affirmed the need for legislation to curb the vice and cited that the process needed prudent planning.
“We want to do it right, we put in place the policy then draft legislation,” said the PS.
Dan Wanyama, the chair of the Sports Committee was also receptive to the suggestion and committed to taking the necessary steps to formulate laws illegalizing match-fixing.
“We have heard you, we will help put in place legislation to criminalize match fixing so that those who engage in this vice can be charged and arrested in a court of law.”
The lack of a constitutional provision that holds match fixers liable for their actions has been an enabler of the vice in the country for a long time. Sanctions from FKF and FIFA have been the only punishment for these offenders, which hasn’t been enough in curbing the issue.
With proper laws enacted, it is likely that sanity in the game will be restored and the dignity of the sport uplifted once again.
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