Allow back non-contact sports, betting
Covid-19 remains at large . It is still as dangerous as it is deadly. The need for precautions will never be overestimated. But life has been creeping back from the days of total lockdown to the current partial. Yet certain activities remain under lock and key.
There are some non-contact sport that can go ahead with events as long as the organisers met required health precautions. From golf to cricket and athletics to tennis, these disciplines are not as high-risk as rugby, football and the like.
From the moment the coronavirus pandemic crippled global socio-political and economic order in March, sports administrators across the globe have been looking for opportunities to walk back from the ice in which the virus had stuffed the world.
By May, sports was returning and it will not be surprising if by the end of the month some European leagues started allowing fans back into the stadium. Sure, they had to get back for commercial value, for the lost revenue...
But there is hardly any commercial value and revenues to talk about local sports, so many would ask, why should we ‘rush’ back? It wouldn’t be rushing. One of the overlooked reasons for return of sports in Europe is that the economies also needed anti-stress relief.
Covid-19 had squeezed life out of humanity and graffitied misery on all faces. Sports returned a semblance of smiles on the people and it can equally be said of Uganda.
With athletics season scheduled to return next month, isn’t it that time we upped preps for our athletes?
It is also interesting that several shops and markets are operational yet betting parlours remain under lock and key. Thousands of employees are deprived of their jobs yet these businesses pose very minimal risk and can regulated.
Could it be that it would be harder to regulate betting parlours than a market like Nakasero? From rent to taxes and wages, there is too much loss in continued closure that at this point makes little sense when there are more sweaty masses mingling right outside arcades.
