Candidates cry foul over SGM
Gor Mahia did not hold elections in 2015. The eagerly awaited elections are due to be held this year are shrouded in secrecy and mystery.
Additional reporting from the Nation.
As the Gor Mahia fraternity heads to the eagerly-anticipated Special General Meeting on Sunday, leading candidates for the chairmanship position have raised the red flag over the procedure followed in convening the meeting.
Dan Oketch, who is angling to unseat long-serving club boss Ambrose Rachier, on Tuesday said that the planning of the meeting has been shrouded in secrecy.
Chris Omondi, who also wants the top job, also questioned whether the club executive followed the right guidelines as entrenched in the club’s constitution.
“Up to now, we have not been told the exact time when the SGM will begin. Does it mean that the organizers have a hidden agenda or do they want to ambush us?” posed Oketch.
For his part, Omondi said: “The SGM has not been convened procedural because the constitution states that it’s the club chairman or the substantive secretary general who should call for it, yet, in this case, it’s the assistant secretary general. They should come clean on this.”
The SGM is expected to adopt the new constitution and draw a road map for the elections expected to be held in December.
Contacted, acting club secretary general Ronald Ngala defended the office from criticism saying that due process was followed.
“Yes, the deputy secretary general (Anima Aketch) called for the meeting because she was mandated by the executive committee. So, the SGM is an executive decision,” Ngala told Daily Nation Sport.
With the elections long overdue, Oketch and Omondi have been building their support bases with the aim of unseating Rachier.
Oketch has particularly been in an overdrive mode mobilizing supporters off the pitch and also building a strong presence on social media.
If elected, Oketch says that revitalizing the sleeping giant by constructing a modest stadium complete with training facilities as well as injecting professionalism will top his agenda.
Omondi, on the other hand, who served as secretary general before throwing in the towel citing frustration from his colleagues, has been heavily involved with the club’s junior team.
The EC needs to to be transparent on the modalities of the meeting. That said, Chris and Oketch should stop whining, the battle to unseat Rachier is not going to be won in the SGM. Let them campaign where it matters: the voting members and they will win whether the SGM is transparently announced and conducted or not.
Agreed.
Is this Dan Oketch husband to Amina the current dep. secretary general? Build a stadium to draw with likes of s/paka or use the same resources on playing unit & TB to challenge Yanga, Simba, Zamalek, Zesco etc and win regional & continental trophies. Let’s get our priorities right. FOOTBALL IS MORE ABOUT WINNING TROPHIES THAN ANYTHING ELSE.
This SGM is not about candidates but club members
ADR said stakeholders.
Is a stakeholder the same as a member?
Who is a stakeholder?
There are some people who aught to be educated, they will vote in people on the basis of friendship, corruption and bribery. This kind of mentality has killed many teams and would not like to see it this time
There are people who would like to be like Mugabe and Museveni in GM. They want to eat till death. That is why Gor Mahia has stagnated. These dictators should tell us of the progress made with regards to:
-GM bread
-GM water
-GM buse
-Gm Lotto
-GM sacco
-Gate collections
-GM magazine
We want visionary leaders.
Don’t forget most importantly GM FOOTBALL 1) CONTINENTALLY 2) REGIONALLY 3) NATIONALLY with focus on 2016 slump. As you say, is there a vision, mission and goals plus sound strategies & policies or its all guesswork, knee jerk reactions, backstabbing etc,etc? Surely how do you even think of housing a coach at The Stanley even for a day? Administrative choas, where would we be if Aucho didn’t miss the start of the season, a whole chairman undermining his headcoach etc etc, when seasoned officials are running the show.
We also want to know about the Sportpesa sponsorship details. The issue of the chairman’s handling of coaches should also be cleared. I understand that if a coach questions Rachier’s decision, he is on his way out regardless of his performance.We don’t want clueless leaders who are bulldozed by Sponsors. Ati if you cough, Sportpesa sponsorship kwisha.
Just go and vote. Wanting and getting those visionary leaders are different things. Whinning on this wall then come monday we pick from where we left a day before elections
The Ec should explain to us why we have so many bench warmers in Kogallo. why do they buy players that can never feature in any competition? We must do away with the issue of accommodating players in GM simply because they are related to one official or the other.
Guys, from experience of Kenyan elections AR will retainhis seat because Chris and Dan will split the opposition votes. So those who don’t like him better adjust for another 3 years ofhim at the helm. The suggestion of having a 5-member board with a CEO running the show is a better structure for Gor. Thenevery 2 to 3 years we replace 2 of them. Will AR or whoever wins make the changes or do we as members force him to?