Government ‘Kips’ promising

Charles Bakkabulindi

What you need to know:

When Moses Kipsiro won two gold medals at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in India, government promised him a car and house. The promise remains unfulfilled two years later.

After Moses Kipsiro’s double gold triumph at the Delhi Commonwealth Games, government promised him a house and car. Two years down the road, the promise has never been fulfilled. Similar promises welcomed Stephen Kiprotich’s marathon victory at the London Olympics on Sunday.

A day after his land mark triumph which saw the country’s national anthem played at the quadrennial games for the first time since John Akii-Bua’s heroics in 1972, State Minister for Sports Charles Bakkabulindi made more promises.

Appearing before the Parliamentary committee on education, Bakkabulindi said that cabinet was going to meet soon to agree on how to reward Kiprotich but before that government will have to clear the Shs180m pledge made to Kipsiro two years ago.

It is ironical that Kipsiro reward is being considered this financial year and after the runner brought to light the unfulfilled promises prior to the London Games which some circles believe psychologically affected his performance in the 5,000m and 10,000m.

A proposal by the Sports Ministry to have a clear and systematic way of rewarding excelling sports personalities has been on the shelves for years, and Kiprotich will be hoping that he is as lucky as Dorcus Inzikuru if any of the promises that are made to him are to come to fruition. However, his gold medal win could open up the doors to future sports success if the statement from government in the wake of his achievement is anything to go by.

“This success should further galvanize our efforts and resources to produce more athletes that will continue to fly Uganda’s flag high,” read part of the statement issued by the Uganda Media Centre.
Perhaps what the statement dispatched by the Uganda Media Centre Executive Director Fred Opolot failed to note is that you galvanize what is already in place.

Bakkabulindi also used the opportunity to advocate for an increment in the allocations to the sports budget and to make his portfolio independent from the education ministry, which he said partly, explains the country’s dismal performance in London. Currently, sports is allocated Shs5.2b and a big chunk of this caters for wages, reducing sportsmen to outsiders.

The minister’s argument is that an increment of Shs6b will help identify and nurture talent from all parts of the country. “The extra money will enable us to train and facilitate players and also help us to identify talent at early age,” he said.

Further excerpts from the government’s official statement state: “This is a historic moment for Uganda and Kiprotich’s resilience and magnificent finish reminds us as a nation that amidst all odds we can achieve success.”

The sports fraternity, too, believes it is an achievement that can spur future sports success but only if government can ‘kip’ its word.