Kavango clubs question Exco positions held by public officials

Frustration continues to build in the Kavango East Second Division as club representatives demand accountability from the regional executive committee (Exco) — not only over financial transparency, but also regarding who is eligible to serve in leadership positions.

One of the issues at the heart of growing tensions is the fact that Exco chairperson Patrick Mukoya is a traditional leader (headman) in Kavango West, while his deputy, Nathanael Olavi, is the serving CEO of the Rundu Town Council. While the Namibia Football Association (NFA) statutes do not explicitly prohibit individuals holding public office from serving on football bodies, some club members believe the dual roles raise questions of fairness and accountability.

“They may be refusing to hold the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and account to clubs because of the positions they hold,” one team manager told Network Media Hub (NMH) yesterday. “It puts them in a difficult position — and we feel it’s a conflict of interest.”

The manager, who requested anonymity, said the bigger problem is that the Kavango East Football Association (Kefa) has no constitution of its own. “That’s what the Exco have failed to do. Clubs have their own constitutions, but Kefa doesn’t — so it means we automatically use the NFA’s.”

According to the NFA statutes, an AGM must be held at the beginning of every new season. This is where the Exco is expected to table a financial report, approve a new budget, outline promotion and relegation rules and admit new members. However, clubs say no AGM has been held in the past two seasons.

The chairperson, Patrick Mukoya, declined to comment when reached by NMH yesterday, stating that his lawyer had advised him not to speak on the matter.

In a telephone interview, deputy chairperson Nathanael Olavi said yesterday that he was aware of the complaints but disputed claims that N$400 000 had already been received by the Exco.

“To the best of my knowledge, we received N$110 000 initially, then N$90 000 and recently another N$60 000,” Olavi said.

“That brings the total to N$260 000. I’m not part of the finance team, so I can’t confirm anything beyond that. We should check with the NFA to verify how much was actually disbursed.”

However, a media statement issued by the NFA on 21 May states that N$440 000 had been allocated to each of the 14 regional second divisions — including Kavango East — for the current season. This includes N$200 000 from the Namport sponsorship and N$240 000 from the NFA’s internal budget.

Club representatives say this discrepancy is just one example of why an AGM is urgently needed. “We asked for bank statements two weeks ago. No one has responded. And now they’ve released the second-round fixtures without ever consulting clubs or holding the AGM,” the team manager said.

A cancelled extraordinary AGM earlier this year, which clubs say was called off by a senior Exco member at the last minute, only worsened tensions.

While Olavi downplayed the issue, saying many football administrators hold other positions and serve voluntarily, clubs argue that public trust and good governance must come first.

“The moment you lead, you’re accountable. We’re not asking for anything extra — just for the leadership to follow the same rules we’re held to,” the manager said.

Clubs have now indicated they may invoke Article 33.1 of the NFA statutes to convene the AGM without the Exco if no progress is made.