The meeting between FKF and KPL that was scheduled for Friday has been postponed for the second time since KPL Chairman James Musyoki is unwell.PHOTO/Raymond Makhaya.
NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 10 – For the second time, the Joint Executive Committee (JEC) meeting between Football Kenya Federation and Kenyan Premier League officials will not take place on Friday morning as earlier planned with KPL chairman James Musyoki said to be still unwell.
The meeting initially set for Wednesday was called off over the same reasons and Musyoki’s deputy Ambrose Rachier now says they will fix a new date after the chairman gets well.
He has also moved to refute claims that his side of the JEC are playing hard ball, saying they want the matter to be resolved as soon as possible.
“We are not trouble makers as many people out there have been made to believe. The chairman is genuinely sick. He has been unwell since he came back from Germany and we can’t set an exact day for the meeting. We will just wait till he feels better and we make a date. We are not against the meeting,” Rachier told Capital Sport.
This comes even as the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) side feels the league managers are delaying the talks for unclear reasons.
“It is becoming tiring now. If he is really unwell, I think he can still send a proxy and the meeting goes on. We had also agreed that if there are two people from either side, that’s enough for a quorum,” FKF Executive Committee member Chris Amimo said.
However, Rachier insists they will give dialogue a chance and are ready to work towards a common ground with the league having been put on hold by the federation.
When it appeared that a compromise had finally been reached a fortnight ago, Kenyan Premier League (KPL) went ahead to release a 16-team fixture last week, also including Sofapaka and Muhoroni Youth who were demoted because of club licensing reasons.
The decision awoke furor from the federation who in turn suspended the start of the league and opened disciplinary proceedings against KPL JEC members Rachier, Musyoki, CEO Jack Oguda and Mathare United chairman Bob Munro.
“We are subordinates and the federation which runs football in the country has authority to do that. He (Nick Mwendwa) is the president of football in this country and we will honor what he wishes. We will not defy him,” Rachier said.
The league had been primarily set to kick-off this weekend but the start of the new season now remains uncertain with the disagreement still unresolved.
Rachier has now said KPL have no problem with the 18-team league, but the point of concern is Sofapaka and Muhoroni’s demotion and the promotion of Vihiga United and KCB.
“We have no problem going to 18 once the dispute of the six teams who all want to play in the league is resolved. Promotion and demotion should be determined on sporting grounds and we also need to be engaged as per the agreement we signed,” Rachier added.
He now hopes a solution will be reached as soon as possible with time running out to avoid a congestion of fixtures.
“They want 18, and time is running out. When and where will they play?” Stadia are being closed for rehabilitation and time is also running out. On our side, we are ready to solve this,” Rachier who is also the Gor Mahia chairman noted.
