…stifling development of game
WINDHOEK – The Namibia Basketball Federation (NBF) has once again come under fire, this time it is accused of turning a blind eye on its regional coordinators, who are cash- strapped and unable to adequately carry out development programmes.
Speaking to New Era Sport yesterday, a group of aggrieved members of the NBF from various regions, most of whom work on a voluntary basis, expressed dismay at the way the NBF is going about its business and claimed that the lack of financial and administrative support from the NBF head office here in Windhoek is to be blamed for the slow pace of development of basketball in the country. One of the members said they sometimes have to buy equipment such as balls from their own pockets and even cement to repair some basketball courts. “Most of our colleagues in other regions are well aware of the ongoing administrative shenanigans that have bedeviled domestic basketball for quite a while now, but they are reluctant to say it out loud because they are scared of being victimized. Most of the regional members have even quit doing their jobs due to the daily struggles they endure,” said one irate member.
However, NBF Secretary-General Nande Kayala rubbished the allegations and shot back saying those members in the regions have failed the NBF and the entire basketball fraternity. Kayala further made it clear the regional structures of the NBF include a president, vice president, development officer, treasurer and a secretary general in each region and said the purpose of the structures is to allow regional members to run their own finances and administration. “Since the NBF does not have enough funds to feed all the regions, we designed these structures to allow the regions’ presidents and subordinates to source their own funds within the communities where they operate and to put those funds back into the community by carrying out development programmes for the youth. The NBF itself is already under-funded, so how does one expect the NBF to feed more then seven regions with the little funds it gets from government,” said Kayala. A clearly discomfited Kayala also took a swipe at the aggrieved members, saying they should first read the NBF constitution and understand their roles within their respective regions before running to the media with half-truths.
By Otniel Hembapu