NAIROBI, November 24- The clumsy Football Kenya Federation (FKF) is at it again after announcing the promotion of Kakamega Homeboyz and Nakumatt FC to the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) on Monday.
It comes a week before a joint FKF and KPL committee was due to submit a report into the viability of an expanded 18-team top flight they proposed at the end of the 2014 campaign.
The federation that is turning local football into a circus further tripped on itself with their latest bewildering announcement taking the teams to 19 after Nairobi City Stars were spared relegation besides the earlier controversial promotions of Shabana FC and Posta Rangers.
Curiously, this latest comes with top KPL officials away in South Africa to negotiate a new broadcast deal for the league with satellite pay-television SuperSport who are opposed the expansion of the top flight from the current 16.
In letters signed by FKF chief executive, Michael Esakwa sent to the chairmen of both clubs and copied to the media, the federation wrote, “by dint of powers and mandate bestowed and conferred on Football Kenya Federation National Executive Committee, we hereby declare Kakamega Homeboyz/Nakumatt FC duly promoted from the FKF National Super League Zone A/B to the Kenyan Premier League 2015 League season.”
The federation first announced the expansion plans on November 10 before and after the KPL Governing Council declined to adopt the proposal, a joint-committee was formed following a meeting between the two bodies to resolve the matter a week later.
“Football Kenya Federation (FKF) held a meeting with principal stakeholders attended by representative of KPL and SuperSport to discuss two agenda namely change of football calendar and 18-team format in 2015,” the statement from the federation read then.
FKF and KPL chief executive officers, Esakwa and Jack Oguda, FKF vice-president Robert Asembo and George Odhiambo (KPL) where named in the 18-team league board and given 14 days to file findings but the latest action with a play-off between Homeboyz and Nakumatt shelved pending the report.
With one fell swoop, the federation has once again opened a new crisis front.
