Tag: Gor Mahia officials

Aduda and Bolo say Gor Mahia officials are incompetent

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Confederation of African Football (Caf) has written to the FKF and the club asking to see his CAFA papers, or else he will not be allowed to handle the team during the CAF Champions League.

Following the fiasco, former Kogalo treasurer says that nobody at Kogalo knows what to do.

“Part of the requirements is the qualification of the head coach, all have had qualifications from different countries and none has ever had a Caf A licence but we have always made sure that the papers they hold are equalized as per Caf requirements,” part of the statement by Bolo on goal.com

Bolo insists that the club officials should have done their homework before hiring Robertinho.

“The same coach, [Robertinho], has handled clubs in Tunisia and Rayon up to the Caf Confederation Cup quarter-finals. Does it mean that those clubs did the right thing? We seem to have at the moment none in the club who knows what to do!”

What should have been done is to accredit the coach with the technical department of FKF,” Bolo continued.

“A circular was sent out to all the premier league and super league clubs to that effect but unfortunately we never submitted papers for the head coaches accreditation!

“Secondly, the club should have engaged FKF to get in touch with the Brazilian Football Association to authenticate the coach’s A license and request for his equalization!

“We still have one week to go and to ensure that we have a coach on the bench with the Caf requirements.” continued Bolo

Aduda: Gor Mahia officials are asleep

Former CEO Omondi Aduda who resigned from the post to contest for a position at the FKF told goal.com that someone was asleep on the job at Gor Mahia. Aduda was replaced by Raymond Oruo whose credentials are dubious and who lacks the depth of knowledge required to run a football team.

“Someone at Gor Mahia slept on the job,” Aduda told Goal when asked why Caf had reacted that way. “Caf did not question his [Oliveira] qualifications, do you know that none of the foreign coaches have a Caf A license, and what usually happens is that the licenses they hold must be equalized in tandem with the Caf licensing criteria?

“Caf doesn’t have problems with his [Oliveira] certificates, that is not right, even those other foreign coaches that we have had, what you do is you send their papers for equalization so that those certifications they get from their countries are equalized at every given level.

“Caf through club licensing keeps on reviewing every day, so for these, they now insist that the head coaches, particularly those for clubs participating in Champions League and Confederation Cup should have improved to hold an equivalent of Caf A license, which all the coaches, should get because the Caf A license is being conducted in Africa only.

“But if you employ a coach from outside Africa, he must have a Caf B license or an equivalent if it is Uefa pro, for instance, it is better than Caf A but you will pass with it as Caf A, then there is Uefa B like now Oliveira has an A license from Brazil and so what someone should have done is to equate the license with Caf.”

Aduda continued: “Sometimes we always tend to ignore things and the biggest problem is those people masquerading as football administrators and they don’t know the rules and regulations, and they ignore everything, remember the FKF gave a circular that all Premier League and Super League clubs should accredit their coaches, and what Gor Mahia officials did, they slept on the job and did not do that.

“If they did that by even paying Sh100, 000 as requested by FKF, the papers of Oliveira should have been fixed at that time, which someone did not do.

“Now the best that ought to have been done is to take his Caf A license from Brazil, write to the Brazilian federation and ask them one if the license is valid back home, and two what is the equivalence of the license, because on the letter from Caf it is a B license, which is equivalent to a Caf C, and while in Rwanda he did a Caf C course, so that is the actual position.

“And Gor Mahia are now to blame for the whole saga because they have officials who don’t understand football, you have a secretary-general, who doesn’t understand football, you have a former rugby man, who has now been put in as the CEO, sometimes you wonder, and when I was in office and doing all these things people thought we don’t know what we are doing.

The former rugby man Aduda is referring to is new CEO Raymond Oruo

“We should have known all these [issues] and fix them, we must keep abreast of the changes that happen, if you are in football you must keep abreast with the changes like now I know there are officials in Gor Mahia if you ask them how many substitutions are allowed per match, and they don’t know and they pretend to lead football.

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Thanks Sonko and Namwamba but Kogalo must do better

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By Monday April 16, only two days before Kogalo were to play against Supersport United Gor Mahia still had not obtained tickets nor visas. It took the geneosity of Nairobi governor Mike Mbuvi Sonko to save the day when he donated 30 tickets. This after Sports minister Mike Achesa had refused to facilitate tickets. Then the intervention of  Ababu Namwamba (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) enabled K’Ogalo to obtain Visas. Still it was too late to save the day for Ephrem Guikan and Tuyisenge who both missed the trip because their work permits did not meet the criteria required by the South African consulate.

Gor Mahia officials have known for over a month that they would require South Africa visas. And fans have been posting online and in social media that previous Kenyan teams have had difficulty getting such visas. In fact the Kenya women’s youth team once camped at the South Africa embassy after the South African embassy started to make things difficult for their travel.

Yet despite all the advance notice, no one in the Executive Committee saw it fit to start working on obtaining Visas and tickets. Had it not been for Namwamba,  who likes sports and a Nairobi governor (Sonko) who is wealthy enough to donate tickets, Gor Mahia would have been disqualified from the 2018 Confederations cup and possible barred from competing in 2019.

So Kogalo fans must thank Sonko for his generosity and Namwamba for coming to the rescue of the club. But Kogalo fans must demand better from the Chairman. How is it possible that he has been in power since 2008 a but has never seen it fit to change the constitution so the club is run by competent people? And how is it that Ludovick Aduda keeps getting appointed as CEO yet he has not proven competent? One wonders what qualifies him to be the club CEO and what if any accomplishments he has achieved.

For years the club fans  have asked for a competent person to be appointed as General Manager. This person should be in charge of the day to day affairs of the club including ticketing, visas, air-tickets, matchday tickets, accounting and so forth. Eventually the club can expand and start appointing another person to perform tasks like marketing the club, pursuing sponsorships and so forth. This person should be on a performance contract. The more money he brings into the club, the more money he should be paid. Let an established firm like KPMG perform the recruiting and hiring of these individuals.

Gor Mahia has lost several international matches due to self inflicted errors. This is because our system of elections does not yield the best candidates. Its time to create a progressive constitution where competent people are hired to run the club. An independent body like KPMG should interview and hire these people. Left to Rachier, he will likely appoint Ludovick Aduda again.

Kogalo was lucky this time that Sonko and Namwamba came to the rescue. If they continue like this then we might see worse during the group stage. Fans must now make their voices heard. We need competent people running the club.

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Treasurer Sally Bolo denies ticket scam

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Bolo and Nyangi during happier times

Earlier on Sunday, Gor Mahia organizing secretary Judith Nyangi took to suggest that there were other people who were colluding to defraud the club of Ksh 10,000 via sale of fake tickets. “Nimeshika Mwizi” said Judith Nyangi on social media. Fans concluded that Sally Bolo was the culprit.

On Monday, Sally Bolo posted a response of her own:

Good morning Fans,

I would like to take this opportunity to let fans and stakeholders know what exactly transpired on Saturday during our match against Vihiga United FC.

I took the match tickets to Kisumu and handed them over to our agents (Timam) for verification and recording purposes together with the Kisumu County representatives. Both Timam and county reps stamped the tickets. Actually county had sent two boys to stamp on their behalf and after they were done, they came and requested me to give them two complimentary tickets since they were going to eat out side the stadium and getting back would be difficult. I gladly gave two of them one ticket each with my signature. Complimentary tickets are a requirement in footballing world (its a rule)

At about 2 pm, Judith Nyangi, club’s OS came where I was and said she caught someone selling the “fake” ticket and I asked her to check if he had a VIP ticket signed at the back. This was confirmed and I admitted giving him one ticket to regain entry into the stadium because he worked for us in the morning. I later asked OS to ask the boy where he found the terraces ticket from and the boy admitted in our presence that he got tempted and stole the tickets when they were stamping the tickets.

As we continued to interrogate the boy, some men came and asked us (OS and I) to take things slow since the boy is manager’s son. Where I come from, once you have been told “ma en wuod ng’ane ka ng’ane” then you take things easy and solve amicably. I told OS to give us the tickets numbers so we could use them during the reconciliation to determine what booklet was stolen and the County to bear the cost since they were the ones who brought the two boys but instead, she walked away and started saying that she found jakuo. As usual I walked away because I couldn’t stand how she reacted.

During the reconciliation time, we checked on the wall where she posted the tickets to enable us identify the stolen booklet, this was also verified. After investigating with both Timam, county reps and I, it was found that county was liable since the boys worked on their behalf and we deducted Kshs. 10,000/- from their percentage. This matter was therefore resolved amicably and the club was able to recover the money.

In conclusion, I want you guys to think outside the box and note as follows;
1. If am the one who brought the tickets to Kisumu, why would I take them for recording then steal it? If I was a thief as it has been brought to your attention, I would have hidden some booklets and sell without declaring it to all parties concerned.
2. I signed those VIP complementary tickets for security purposes and all parties involved knew about my signature. Why would I give out a document signed by myself to someone to sell knowing that s/he might be caught? Which thief would do that?
3. I met these boys for the first time. How desperate would I be kupiga deal people I hardly knew?

Finally, guys let’s be real and analyse situation before we start calling people’s names? Defamation is a crime. Time will tell and for those who know me well will tell you that being strict in the line of my duty is the course of all these untrue stories.

Anyway, I will not be shaken and as I’ve always said, whoever has the evidence that I stole should come with facts and evidence to prove otherwise.
Thank you!
Sally Bolo
Treasurer, Gor Mahia FC

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Reports of unrest in Gor Mahia EC

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This is an exposee by the Daily Nation

Gor Mahia football club is on a roll. It has seen successes in the recent past and won the league title back to back.

This season, the club has already chalked up eight wins and two draws as well as maintaining their unbeaten run.

This success may make one feel that all is rosy at the club; that would be far from the truth since beneath the aura of achievement; the veneer of peace; the coating of respectability… beneath it all there is an untold tale of a ferocious supremacy contest within the club’s executive committee, which is threatening to derail the club’s campaign.

So vicious are the wars that long-serving chairman Ambrose Rachier threatened to resign a fortnight ago. An investigation by Daily Nation Sport has unearthed differences in opinion between various camps of the committee on how the club’s finances should be managed.

There are two sets of protagonists in this contest; those who want the club to streamline its operations and have the finances accounted for.

On the other hand, there is a posse that roots for the retention of the status quo — allowing the centre to continue calling the shots. It is this porous system that has made the club lose millions of shillings in gate collections through pilferage at a time when it struggles to make ends meet without a shirt sponsor.

It’s these differences that led to the resignation threats by Rachier. In a text message copied to members of the executive committee, and which Daily Nation Sport has seen, Rachier said: “There is no point my continuing to be your chairman if committee decisions can be flouted as happened today (in home match against Sofapaka on April 19) in gate collections. I will advise my decision by Monday.”

A member of the executive committee, who spoke to us on condition of anonymity, said that whereas other EC members had advised that all net gate collections be channelled to the club’s bank account and reports tabled in meetings, Rachier was adamant that he receives the net collections from the ticketing firm Earth View as he has been paying the players from his own coffers.

“What we are having are supremacy contests because gate collections are not being accounted for. The chairman does insist that he receives the cash on the ground that he runs the club from his own resources,” said the source.

WERE CONFISCATED

The simmering tension at the glamour club, which has ironically failed to attract a shirt sponsor despite boasting a huge fan base and rich history, exploded on April 19 when K’Ogalo tackled Sofapaka at the City Stadium.

During the game, four ticket booklets without stamps and club seals were confiscated, confirming the long held fears that there has been pilferage at the gate.

When he resigned from the club under unclear circumstances in January, former secretary-general Chris Omondi pointed to the pilferage as one of the reasons behind his exit and the lack of goodwill from the committee to professionalise the running of the club.

“It is sad that some members of the executive committee see Gor Mahia as a cash cow,” he lamented in an interview with Daily Nation Sport. When contacted, Rachier vehemently denied the allegations, insisting that he has always rooted for professionalism.

“It is (the allegation) convoluted and I expected it. I’m not surprised. My stand is on professionalising gate collections and putting it firmly in the hands of a qualified firm.

“That is what I stand for and have stood for all the years. I have tried Wells Fargo and now Earth View but this does not go well with people who want to take the gate collections. I will gain nothing by putting money in my hands; because at the end of the day, the buck stops with me. I get very furious when funds are not being accounted for.”

He added: “I know what I have done for the club and would want to leave it at that. This is an internal matter and we are going to decide the way forward.”

Rachier said that on April 19, he was handed Sh347,000 as net collections but declined to take the cash as it had been collected by “unauthorised people”.

“Earth View were thrown out, some people went ahead to collect the money, and attempted to pay me the balance, which I declined to take.”

Gor have been without a shirt sponsor since March last year when Tuzo pulled the plug on their three-year sponsorship package.

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Gor Mahia CEO Aduda shown the door

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The contract of Gor Mahia CEO Lordvick Aduda has been terminated.

The decision to terminate his contract was reached during Thursday’s Executive Committee meeting. “He is accused of unlawfully representing the interests of the club to the federation as pertains to the clubs position in the ongoing FKF – KPL stand-off whereas the club is in support of the KPL,” read the statement printed in the Standard.

Aduda now says that he quit and was not fired and has taken the decision after the management decided to go against the Football Kenya Federation directive by announcing that they will participate in the Kenyan Premier League.

“I advised the club not to go against FKF’s decisions but I am not ready to hold onto a position whereas my advice is not being considered by the club.”

He denied that he has been working with the Football Kenya Federation to undermine the club’s management insisting that he will stand by the FIFA statutes. He further said that Gor Mahia may suffer the consequences of going against FKF

“I am not ready to be antagonized by the repercussions of the decision that the club (Gor Mahia) has taken to go against the federation” he continued.

Misguided

Aduda is clearly misguided on this issue. To begin with, all 16 teams in the KPL have decided to stay within KPL. Does Aduda want Gor Mahia to play in a FKF league by itself?

He speaks of FIFA statutues yet it is FIFA itself that has mandated that the league be run by KPL and that the league must remain 16 teams. And from a financial perspective, there is no evidence that Nyamweya will compensate clubs for the loss of Supersport money so what should each club do. He may be correct however that Gor Mahia as a club should not take an antagonistic stance against FKF.

Accomplishments

It is true that Aduda has been CEO for a brief period. But in that brief period, what new initiatives has he started. The primary job of a CEO should be to raise the financial profile of the club by starting initiatives that can generate money for the club. In this regard, if Gor Mahia is interested in hiring a new CEO, they should perform thorough interviews with people who have a financial background and hire them on performance contracts.

Dialogue

The one area where Mr. Aduda is right is that Gor Mahia should not take an antagonistic stance against FKF. The FKF chairman Sam Nyamweya has now called for dialogue

“All football stakeholders will engage in dialogue and further discussion until next week as we seek an amicable and unifying solution ahead of the start of the new FKF premier league season. This is in a bid to avoid making rushed decisions so that the final outcome is  a way acceptable and favorable to everyone” reads a statement from Nyamweya.

If the FKF is genuinely looking for a resolution that benefits all parties, then I would urge Ambrose Rachier as KPL Chairman to take the offer with both hands.

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Blackberry discusses near future

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Gor Mahia striker George Odhiambo “Blackberry” has said that his former club, Randers FC has offered him an opportunity to return to Denmark.

“Randers have approached me and asked if I could go back but I am yet to make a decision. Gor have also offered me a new contract but I need to sit and think about my move other than making a rushed decision. I am currently on holiday and preferably, I will make a decision in January,” he told Capital FM.

During his first stint at Randers, Blackberry impressed fans but at the time the club was in turmoil and in relegation danger. Today many Randers fans think he was not given a chance. Blackberry for his part blames his agent.

“The problems that were there especially in Randers were brought up by an agent. He was not a good agent. He had problems with the club and hence I could not play often. However, I have changed him and I am now looking forward to better times,” he alleged.

He was sidelined from Randers upon which he had tryouts in Finland before joining Azam of Tanzania followed by City Stars of Nairobi and Shirak FC of Armenia. He returned to Gor Mahia in January of 2014. It took a long time for him to return to his form. The arrival of coach Frank Nuttall breathed a new life into Blackberry as he slowly started to regain his form.

“I worked extra hard in training because I wanted to get back to my best and slowly, it was paying off. At this time also while in holiday, I am training on my own because I want to be paces ahead when the New Year starts,” he said.

“I want to get back to my 2010 form and even better. My target is to get call ups to the national team and not only be in the squad, but a regular starter as well. It is a long journey but I want to work hard to achieve my targets,” added the winger.

Another stint at Gor Mahia is precisly the tonic that Blackberry needs to regain his form. Now that coach Nuttall has helped Blackberry regain his confidence and found a suitable position for him as winger, Blackberry has an opportunity to work his way back to fame and acclaim.

Chris Omondi returns

Meanwhile Gor Mahia secretary general Chris Omondi has apparently returned to the club. He confirmed this with a cryptic post on social media.

“back to the trenches it is……the fallacy that “we can make changes from within” need to be transcended…..a complete uprooting of the system is what is needed”

Earlier there were reports that Gor Mahia elders were meeting with Omondi to convince him to return. With Omondi now back at helm one can only hope that the divisions within the EC will be healed and they will begin to get the train back on the tracks.

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Ambrose Rachier, EC must learn from past errors

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Leaders are often defined by how they react in times of crisis. The crisis currently faced by Gor Mahia is significant. Every single day seems to bring more bad news whether it is key players leaving, sponsorship deals falling through due to politics, not to mention the fact that for the first time in years, Gor Mahia appears unable or unwilling to sign any players. Players whom the club was said to be targeting have instead chosen lesser clubs. This includes former players whom the fans expected would be re-signed.

A playing unit that was depleted by mass departures of key players in January was further depleted in June and again in December. The club has been unable or unwilling to replace the departing players with players of similar quality. There are stories of deals falling through because the club chairman did not show up to a meeting.

There are also reports of disunity with the club’s executive committee, as well as reports that players have not received their November salaries. That the club was still able to win the league under such difficult circumstances appears to be a miracle. However the way things are going it is highly unlikely that the club will be able to repeat the feat in 2015. Now the club is even contemplating not participating in the CAF champions league.

It is true that in 2014, Chairman Rachier and the EC attempted a raft of measures to stem the problems created by Tuzo’s withdrawal as sponsors. Most notable of these were the 350100 MPesa initiative, the membership drive, jersey sales and the grand fund raiser whose initial target was to raise KES 60 million. All measures failed in their goals or only partially met their goals as was predicted on this column. A good leader would do an honest self-assessment to find out why all these initiatives have failed.

We keep hearing officials complain that the club has huge fan base but the fans are unwilling to contribute. Have these officials ever really asked themselves why fans do not contribute?

So why have these initiatives failed?

Transparency

This word needs no introduction. It has been said many times but it bears repeating. Unless the club puts in place a system that will assure fans that money will not be missapropriated, they will develop cold feet when it comes to contributing their hard earned money. That is why it was so comical when Secretary general Chris Omondi went on social media to tell fans “Do not deceive yourselves, transparency is for members only”.

Even at this point some fans are skeptical about the club’s finances. Many do not believe the club is broke given that some money was raised during the end of year fund raisers. So fans are perplexed as to why the club failed to pay November salaries on time and has not signed any player.

If Rachier wants to assure transparency he can hire a external/reputable auditing company like Price Waterhouse or Diamond Trust. This company wil be responsible for soliciting funds for various initiatives like membership drivem, SACCO and the 350100 initiative. They would then keep an agreed upon portion of the receipts and disburse the remainder to the clubs for expenses like transportation and so forth. This way the handling of finances is taken out of the hands of the EC and transparency is assured in the eyes of fan.

The initiatives were never sustained

The club assumed that die-hard fans would pour forward and enroll as members. When this did not happen, sec gen Omondi went on social media to vent his frustrations. No matter how popular a product is, a company has to advertize it and convince the public to buy it. Gor Mahia is in the same boat. The membership drive should have been pushed hard. The club should have been selling membership cards at every match including friendly matches. Furthermore, the club should have been taking measures to assure those who are concerned about missapropriation of funds.

The 350100 started with vigour and the club was even taking tentative steps towards accountability by showing the club accounts online. But then they suddenly stopped. And now they wonder why fans are no longer contributing?

 Merchandize sales

Club officials have complanied that fans are not buying merchandize. They must ask themselves why. They must ask fans why. Look: Fans will not simply buy jerseys to support the club. They must actually like the jerseys. And it must fit in their price range. Why were the “Gor Mahia” labeled jerseys so popular in 2010? The had the club name on the front. And they could be customized to write a fans name on the back. And the price range was reasonable. A business must customize products to suit customer tastes. This club is no different.

If the new Joma jerseys do not fit this criteria then the club should not be surprised if jersey sales are below par. Indeed if Joma does not provide flexibility then the club should ditch them and work with a different supplier who can produce jerseys cheap enough that fans will not have to buy cheaper knock off jerseys  from river road. A supplier who can customize jersey names for each fan. The club must then tell fans where to buy jerseys and educate them on why it is important to buy only from legitimate sources.

Learn from past mistakes

Chairman Rachier announced that the club is forming a SACCO starting on December 28. Unless they apply the lessons learned with regard to transparency, sustainment and affordability, the SACCO will also be colossal failure much like the membership drive and other initiatives. Nothing has changed. It is still the same fan base you are appealing to. What makes the club officials think that the SACCO initiative will be different.

The club never made an effort to get contributions from diaspora based fans. We understand Rachier was in the USA on holiday. Perhaps next time he visits, he should consider setting up an overseas branch for the club. There are numerous fans based in the diaspora who can contribute to the club’s fortunes if convinced.

 Re-assure the public

With the club in turmoil, the chairman must step forward and steady the ship as it navigates stormy waters. The current atmosphere in the club is not conducive to attracting sponsors because sponsors want to to be associated with well run organizations, and not organizations that appear disjointed.

The current atmosphere is not conducive to attracting potential players especially when they hear about unpaid salaries. It is therefore imperative that Mr. Rachier step forward and re-assure the fans, members and the playing unit and bring an end to the discord and disunity within the EC.

Heal Rifts within the EC

Club officials should be pulling together. As mentioned above, a disjointed EC is not conducive to good public relations.

Secretary general Chris Omondi has recently complained that some of his initiatives were shot down. Among these was the partnership with Diamond Trust Bank and pay gate in a bid to introduced computerized ticketing to ease loss of money at the gates, but this was hugely criticised and never implemented.

“We were losing so much money in the gates and I tried to introduce a new system that would be more transparent and we would get much more from gate collections but it was never supported.” Said Omondi

If true then perhaps Rachier owes a cogent explanation to Mr. Omondi on why this initiative was shot down. Omondi was after all duly elected. And since this is out in the public, Rachier owes fans an explanation. Why is it that at a time when the club is broke, the club is refusing to take steps to stem losses?

Why not bring Diamond Trust back to handle both gate collections and membership funds in order to inject a modicum of transparency.

Omondi further complained that he was interested in signing younger players while other EC members wanted to pursue experienced players like Joackins Atudo. The situation whereby EC members decide which players is comical because none of them are qualified for this task.

The EC should also leave signing of potential players to competent technical staff such as Bob Ogolla, Fran Ouna and others, unlike the current comical situation where EC members were fighting over which players should be signed.

 Show a plan for the future

Will the club always be in begging mode? We hope not. Mr. Rachier should chart his vision for how money raised via memberships drives or the SACCO will be re-invested to take the club out of begging mode. Set a realistic goal. Instead of making empty unreachable goals like building a stadium, why not set a goal of developing sports ground.  One that can be used for training but can also be rented out for use for various sporting events, by organizations, like FKF lower leagues, KRFU and even companies. By setting realistic goals, fans will be more inclined to contribute financially.

 Another key to the future is to get rid of the club’s archaic constitution and replace it with a modern constitution so it is run by competent professionals. Only the Chairman and one Vice Chairman position should be elective. The club should have a competent general manager in charge of keeping accounts in a transparent manner, marketing the club to potential sponsors, marketing the club to potential fans. Etc. Such a person should be hired on a performance contract which means for example his pay is based on metrics like attendance at matches.

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Sec Gen Chris Omondi resigns by SMS

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Drama ensued within the Gor Mahia executive committee as club secretary general Chris Omondi resigned apparently in frustration.

The SMS message read thus

Hello Jakom (Ambrose Rachier), just wanted to inform you that your spitefulness has stretched my tolerance levels…..I consciously decided never to be confrontational with you….will be stepping down as Gor Mahia SG (Secretary General) within next week after informing the Executive…pliz (please) be informed….I am convinced am not being o ting (small creature) this afternoon…thnx (thanks) in advance Jakom, according to the post on futaa.com

Omondi further confirmed to futaa.com that he was indeed stepping down.

“It’s true I am stepping down effective next week…I feel I am not adding value to the club thus not at peace with my conscience…much will be pointed out when I make it official”

Ever since he became club secretary general, Omondi has earned a reputation for emotional outbursts especially on social media. Earlier in the year when challenged on accountability, he told off his detractors saying thus “Accountability is for members only. Stop deceiving yourselves” . Earlier this week he made another emotional outburst on social media that went as follows:

I have been receiving several invitations to attend End Year Parties organized by Gor Mahia Branches,n some have even planned to travel to other parts of the country na wengine outside the country….that is very good,……

As we hold such parties,i challenge you to pose for a moment n ask ourselves,what value have we added to the club this season worth celebrating?We are aware of the condition of the club,did we attempt to augment the efforts of the office-hata kama ni one day transport allowance of 12k,one match winning bonus of 140k,ama hata support to Junior team in whatever form?????

Pliz spare me the old crap “branches are not recognized”…..I choose to celebrate Gor Mahia FansFoundation,Nakuru Prestige Branch,Nakuru Korfan Branch,Away Branch n Face Book Branch….n the BBC CREW….I can comfortably attend ur parties.

He went on to say that rather than spend money on end of year parties, the branches should channel the money towards the club.
The post earned him a lot of ire from fans on social media with many threatening to vote him out at the next election. I suppose Omondi has pre-empted fans by stepping down in dramatic style.
As far as memory serves me this is the first time a club official has resigned while expressing frustration at both the chairman and the fans.
The person next in line to take over from Omondi would be either Naima Aketch or Ronald Ngala. When questioned on whether she would tale over from Omondi, Naima responded that she could not because “Gor Mahia ina wenyewe” perhaps a reference to the fact that some officials think Rachier has been running the club in a dictatorial manner without anyone else’s input.

 

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If you want to be elected then get involved in the club

by admin

Gor Mahia players are now back in the country after the below par performance at the CECAFA club cup. The poor run came against the backdrop of a poor run locally that saw them eliminated from the GoTV shield and drop several points.

Gor Mahia will now embark on defending the league title that they won in 2013. And the players say they have learned harsh lessons in Kigali and will apply them in their league campaign. And with the club out of the GoTV shield, the KPL Top 8 and CECAFA cup, the league is all that is left in order to avoid a trophyless season, something that has not happened since 2010.

Team captain Jerim Onyango admitted that the team’s below par performance was a wakeup call as they now embark on defending the league title.

“We did not expect to give such a poor show, but we have learnt the hard way that every game counts and that working hard is a must for every team, even league champions,” Onyango told Daily Nation Sport.

“We will now focus on the league and hope we win it so that we can take part in the same competitions next year,” he added.

Much has been said about why Gor Mahia experienced a poor run. But what is clear is that today starting on August 19 2014, The club needs its fans more than ever. The club is facing a crisis similar to the ones they faced in 1973-74,  and 1984-85. To retain the league, fans must jump in and support the team materially, physically and in spirit.

Get Involved

The club needs its voiceferous  fans to join in building the club by contributing and by becoming active members. Of late there have been several examples. During the AFC match, fans performed an impromptu fund raising and raised KES 75,000 to settle player allowances which were unpaid. Two months earlier, Kogalo fans came together to raise KES 150,000 to defray Nasio’s medical expenses. Aside from helping defray expenses, it actually lifts player morale.

The above two examples show that fans are capable of seizing the initiative to help resolve the club’s financial issues when the EC has proven incapable. And there are plenty of ways can contribute time and effort. There is the Gor Mahia funds foundation which actively supports the Kogalo U19 side and engages in public relations initiatives on behalf of the club. They too need your support.

Branches which used to actively bolster the club’s finances have been rendered almost irrelevant in recent years because the office has not seen it fit to incorporate them into the club’s structures. This is a tragic mistake because branches are the most effective means to get fans involved in supporting the club materially. In past years, whenever Gor Mahia visited Kisumu or Nakuru for example, it was the local branches that hosted the team. No such structures exist today. It is up to individual fans to take the initiative to revive these branches. And today branches need not be locational. They can be virtual, such as an online. And why not a diaspora branch for Gor Mahia followers overseas ?

Election aspirants

Taking the initiative to be active in supporting the club is especially important for those who who might be aspiring to hold office in the club. Fans tend to vote for people whose track record they know. An incumbent is likely to be re-elected barring unique circumstances. And this is why aspirants who tried to challenge Mr. Ambrose Rachier in recent elections failed miserably. Unless Gor Mahia fans know your track record, you likely will not be elected to the Chairmanship. Being antagonistic  against initiatives introduced by the club will not get you elected.  If for example you oppose the #350100 initiative due to lack of transparency then why you can  start a program of your own. Show your transparency, your organizational skills and then raise funds for the club. When you do this, the fans will see you as competent and will be more willing to elect you. In past years we even had aspirants promise to get sponsorship for the club if elected. This begs the question : If you are able to get sponsorship then why not just do it ? Why insist on being elected first ?

Back in the 1990s, one Maxwell Ombogo was elected Gor Mahia chairman unanimously because he took it upon himself to raise funds for the club and donated much of his own money. Unfortunately for Gor Mahia fans, Mr. Ombogo passed away shortly after being elected. And more recently, George Bwana was elected Secretary General in part because of fund raising efforts. At one point, online branches raised money to buy airline tickets for the team to travel to the Coast.

The point being made here is that if you aspire to hold office then involvement in positive initiatives is a sure way to get voters acquainted with you. So if you want to be elected, then do not just sit back. Get involved. The club needs all hands on deck. This will also enable the club to vote in competent, committed and  diligent officials whose track record has been seen by fans.

Go to the stadia and support the team

Player morale may be at a low point right now. There is uncertainty about whether coach Williamson is leaving. There is uncertainty over constant player turnover. And it is not clear whether players salaries and allowances are being paid on time. What all this means is that the players will need the fans to get behind them to lift their morale. Now more than ever, fans must attend matches in droves.  And just as important, fans must turn out in droves and pay for tickets. Fans who try to get in free must be confronted and handed over to the Police.

If you know this chap tell him that the club does not need fans like him

Hold the EC Accountable

The fact of the matter is that there has been gross negligence at the club over the past year or so. This negligence saw the club land in trouble with the KRA and let the sponsorship with Tuzo lapse. And now 4 months later, fans still do not know where we stand with the KRA. Has the club engaged KRA to sort out this issue ? Has the club sought any assistance from the ministry of sports ? Does the club really owe KES 118 million ? If not then what is the correct amount ? For some reason the club EC has not seen it fit to address this issue since it came up in April. The gross negligence still abounds.

The current instability at the club with players and coaches deserting at every opportunity to seek greener pastures are directly due to this issue. And unless it is resolved, there will be no sponsor forthcoming. This is  because as KRA stated in April, they will confiscate all sponsorship money until the tax issue is resolved. And which sponsor will be willing to support the club under such conditions ? Most likely none.

At this rate, the club will end this 2014 league and go into the 2015 league without this issue being resolved. This means that we will start the 2015 league still with no sponsor because the KRA issue has not been resolved. That is unless fans pressure the EC into resolving this issue.

Time to Change the constitution

Another area where fans should push for change is in the constitution. The club still has an archaic constitution that was probably created in 1968. The issues of gross negligence are precisely because the club rarely has competent people running the club. In reality, the only elected positions should be those of Chairman and one Vice Chairman. The remaining positions should be held by competent professionals such as a CEO / General Manager, Marketing and Accounting, all hired on performance contracts.

Buy Club merchandize when available

The phrase “when available” is key here because as far as I can see, even with the financial difficulties the club faces, the EC has not seen it fit to sell club merchandize. And those new Joma jerseys are not as inspiring as the “Gor Mahia” jerseys that became immensely popular starting in 2010.

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Once again I urge fans to get solidly behind the team as they resume the campaign to retain the league starting this Sunday against SoNy Sugar. With no sponsors in sight, fans are the only recourse the club has if the club is to retain the league title.

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