Uganda: USL And Fufa Fights Are Selfish

25 June 2011

opinion

IF anyone said FUFA and USL are partners in local football development, they lied. Ever since the Uganda Super League (USL) was created, there have been more cock fights than olive branches between the two egoistic bodies.

There have been sharp disagreements too, within the USL itself, the most memorable one of which led to the forced resignation of former secretary, Mujib Kasule.

It’s either about the money, who wields the ‘real’ power, who has the bigger ego or who is most knowledgeable about the game. The nastiest fights have been about personalities. Thankfully this time, FUFA president Lawrence Mulindwa has been out of it, choosing instead to let the technocrats show us how different they are from politicians in managing football affairs. They are not!

The latest battle of course concerns a decision on whether the league should have 14 or 15 clubs next season.

The USL says, it’s 2 clubs out and 2 clubs in. FUFA says, it’s 3 clubs in, irrespective. And they also correctly say, they have the final say on football matters in the country. The USL have followed up their threat with real action by releasing next season’s fixture list before a final resolution of the matter.

Apparently, they have a very important partner starting next season in the name of Pay television channel, Super Sport, whose interests must be taken into consideration when talking fixtures.

But FIFA laws bar them from interfering. The whole idea of the Big league is premised on the fact that three teams would be promoted to the super league and FUFA have an obligation to be professional and keep their side of the bargain.

Previous fights have involved the impromptu summoning of the Cranes squad which has led to disruption of the league fixtures, the dismissal of Boroboro FC from the league, sponsorship deals involving Eco bank, Smart Tv and Super Sport and different interpretation of rules.

We have reached a stage where it doesn’t matter who is wrong or right because it’s obvious, the two bodies will never see eye to eye.

The simmering hatred between, is right under their skin.

Can football for once be the only agenda when these two sit in their separate boardrooms? Can we distance individual opinions from the letter of the law?

Both USL and FUFA are claiming that they are invoking rules to take positions on whether there should be 14 or 15 clubs next season which is the paramount authority and rule book?

One of the parties must have deliberately left this as a grey area knowing that they would use it later in a stage managed fight to prove supremacy. The question is, which side was the architect?

USL is said to be seeking Mulindwa’s final intervention and they hope his ruling favours their argument. But Mulindwa has so far steered clear of the mess.

AllAfrica – All the Time