FSL and USL must be dissolved

With government failing to solve the impasse between FSL and USL, it is perhaps time the country was banned by the world governing body Fifa

“We have resolved that the current leagues go on and complete their season”. Those were the words that described the outcome of the drawn out consultation on how to resolve the impasse between Fufa and USL last Tuesday.

So the game in this country will for the remainder of this season continue to be governed by two parallel bodies that don’t see eye to eye, but claim to share the same interest – that of driving the game of football forward.
It is a typically meaningless outcome from a typically meaningless process and knowing the methods and success rates of commissions of inquiry in this land, perhaps we shouldn’t have held our breath in anticipation. Still why did we even bother with deadlines, back and forth consultations and stakeholder meetings? Why waste tax payers’ money to arrive at a conclusion that was the only viable option until the next accounting period?

First of all let us agree that Fufa and USL are fundamentally unable to merge, so even the announcement that they should have merged by June is another failure bound to occur in 3 months’ time. Putting aside the legal challenges of a merger it should be noted and most importantly so, that the two are emotionally incompatible.

You see what on the surface appears as a divergence of views is in fact an entirely rotten egocentric scuffle to be the dominant force in an arena whose commercial influence is growing by the day. And if you have noticed that today’s battles are more vicious it is because Shs30billion will pour into the game over the next 5 years.

The two bodies may claim to be custodians of the local game but what their relations reveal to us is a deep seated contempt for each other and an arrogant refusal to put football ahead of their egocentric duels. They seem to be set up to spite each other and the ensuing bad blood is dragging football through the gutter of pettiness.

So Government should dissolve both of them and form an independent one to take over if only because it makes administrative sense to have only one authority. I guess this would be in the general interest of moving on.

In fact this is the decision Government should have come out with on March 05, because it will have to make that call anyway at some moment in time. Right now I don’t see what is to be achieved by decision postponement. All I see is the continued run down state of the game as individual egos continue to be bottle fed by fear and sheer incompetence.

There shall be a legal minefield to circumnavigate no doubt and the ultimate repercussion will be to ban Uganda from Fifa related activities. But that is the likely outcome of all this circus anyway, so we might as well get on with it and spare everyone the burden of hollow inquires and outcomes.

It could also be that a Fifa ban would actually be a blessing in disguise. Right now our football needs to take a step back, regroup and shape up. A Fifa ban would serve the purpose of providing the much needed space necessary to take such corrective action.

banturakim@gmail.com