Government must plan better for sports sector

Last week, I read that the Parliament, spearheaded by the Speaker Rebecca Kadaga, collected money for the Uganda Cranes’ participation in the Africa Cup of Nations 2017. This collection was made (or was to be made) through an automatic deduction of Shs500,000 from legislators’ salaries. It is commendable that the Speaker is making moves to fulfil pledges made by Parliament. While I admire her efforts, I’m also concerned about the sustainability of this kind of approach in affairs of national importance. Uganda Cranes represent the country of Uganda. They should not be doing it through constant knocking on doors, begging and hand-outs.
There is a national body for sports in this country. The National Council of Sports and Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) were put in place to do the running around on funding affairs of Sports and Football in the case of FUFA.

The time came and went for us to abandon the ‘wedding meetings’ culture to handle matters of importance. Instead, Parliament is best placed to table Bills to enforce payment of sports people representing the country well before hand and not just one or two weeks before a major sporting event. I recently wrote a letter to the Speaker reminding her about how the laws put in place by Parliament are not being actualised at local government level across the country to ensure that Ugandans can have their talents in sports and other fields developed systematically. The Local Governments should also be held to account on this matter. If we succeed at regional and international level, it will not be by chance but through conscious efforts in developing the potential that we obviously possess.

In this case, planning is our core challenge. Moreover Parliament should be holding FUFA and NCS to account on matters on and off the field of football and sports in general.
When you see the football coach desperately looking around for money for the team, then this means the team is already distracted from the task ahead on the field. Besides bearing the burden of the country, the players are worried about pay. Football is work, and work must be paid for.

FUFA also enjoys public support at the moment. If they can be given proper oversight to avoid the scandals of swindling of funds, then Parliament can co-opt corporate sector to be benefactors of our various sporting activities in the country even before opportunities to represent the country arise on the continent and beyond.
We must outgrow this problem of persistent adhoc-ism in public affairs for the country to progress to bigger things.
Eria Nsubuga,
[email protected]