F1 vote will remain a fraud as long as club remains static

KAMPALA

On the face of it, it is blatant fraudulence. The Formula One - a motorsports club formed by Ugandan fans of the world championship (F1) - must fulfill all conditions they committed to with local body FMU or the fraudulence will continue.

F1 is one of 15 voting members affiliated to the Federation of Motorsport Clubs of Uganda (FMU), and even voted a fortnight ago in the elective assembly, which saw Vintage Car Club boss Jack Wavamuno replace George Kagimu as FMU president.

According to the amended FMU constitution, for one to be affiliated to the official regulatory authority of motorsport activities in Uganda they must have their own constitution and at least 30 active members among others.

Once you are admitted you are required to serve some probation period determined by FMU and then stamped and approved to become a full member, complete with voting rights. F1 served three years of probation before they became full members with voting rights three years ago.
But after the constitution basics are fulfilled, every club intending to be affiliated to FMU must convince the body’s executive and assembly that they offer something different from what other existing members cannot, or do not have, for them to be admitted. “You have to convince the executive that you can add value to the fraternity,” shares Raymond Kibira, FMU secretary general, “And when F1 came to us, they made their case that they would start Go-Karting.”

Go-Karting is a smaller version of the F1 World Championship involving small four-wheeled racing cars. F1 Uganda were apparently offered space at Namboole to Go-Kart a few years ago but they turned it down. But three years on as full members, apart from being Ugandan Formula One fans who converge on weekends to watch the Grand Prix on TV, they add no value to FMU, and take away none for that matter.

So why does a club have voting rights in an assembly of a supposedly credible organisation with watching F1 on TV their only claim to fame? You, 28 others and I can as well form an IndyCar (USA version of F1), get affiliated to FMU, and cast that vote as we reward whoever helped us in. “It’s unfortunate that they haven’t started Go-Karting yet as they had committed but we have made it clear to them that they either start or they lose their affiliation,” assures FMU’s Kibira. “They have two events lined up in this year’s calendar so we are hopeful they will kart-track.”

It is my prayer too.
This anomaly is, however, not limited to F1.
Vintage Club, which has a humongous membership of about 150 members, has not organised any event in while, and slumber has been their comfy residence. But they were active in voting early this month at Silversprings. The last time Vintage Club added value to the sport was in 2005 when - through FMU - they contributed vintage and classic cars (their would-be specialty) to the shooting of the Last King of Scotland.

It’s been a loud siesta since, punctuated by occasional wake-ups for voting duty. But with world body FIA demanding their member associations to have a vintage and classic category as a requirement, this is their time to earn their vote; a clean vote.

VOTING CLUBS
1. Mbarara Motor Club (MMC)
2. Formula One Club
3. Uganda Motorsport Safety Marshals Association
4. Vintage Club
5. Motorsport Promo Uganda (MPU)
6. Motorsports Africa Club (MOSAC)
7. Central Motor Club (CMC)
8. Enduro Club
9. Uganda Motocross Club (UMX C)
10. Speed way Motorsports Club (SMOC)
11. Uganda Motorsport Marshals Association
12. United Motorsports Club (UMOSPOC)
13. Eastern Motor Club (EMC)
14. Uganda Motor Club (UMC)
15. Southern Motor Club (SMC)
*Each club has five votes
* The Nine executive members also vote
* Electoral College consists of 84 members