By Carlos Kambaekwa
WINDHOEK – The dust refuses to settle on the growingly ugly war of words between the country’s football authorities and local business mogul, Sidney Martin.
In the latest twist that could further increase tension in the already soured relationship between Namibian football presiding bodies and the outspoken African Stars chairman, MTC Namibia Premiership (NPL) charismatic chairman, Johnny ‘JJD’ Doeseb, has called Martin to order describing him as an undesirable object and a threat to the future of domestic football.
Doeseb has climbed into Martin with bare knuckles.
Martin has apparently been declared enemy number one of the top echelons of domestic football, notably the country’s flagship league.
At the centre of the storm is Martin‘s decision to challenge an earlier decision by the NPL Management Committee (MC) ordering Stars’ ill-fated league clash against Orlando Pirates to be replayed over the remaining 8 minutes after the initial match ended abruptly as a result of a power outage.
The Reds sought refuge in a court intervention but the application was dismissed and struck off the roll by no-nonsense judge Petrus Shivute. However, Martin filed another protest against Pirates for allegedly fielding an ineligible player in the abbreviated match.
Reacting to Martin’s outburst against the NPL and its principal sponsor MTC, the equally outspoken Doeseb said he had no clue why Martin still claimed that the league did not conclude after his club played the remaining 8 minutes of their final league match against Pirates.
“They (African Stars) had protested but their protest was invalid because of non-compliance with the rules relating to the fashion in which they lodged their protest. The rules state very clearly that a protest must be filed and served before the game, contrary thereto, it was lodged after the game.
A fuming Doeseb adds that the league responded to Stars in writing in response to their invalid protest and could not understand why Martin is still referring to their protest. “I am amazed that he has now resorted to dragging our sponsor and the biggest sponsor of sports in this country, MTC, through the mud.”
He says the league will not allow one man to shatter the dreams of the so many footballers and football-loving citizens in the country by threatening its principal sponsor.
“It is an open secret that MTC is the only institution that keeps football alive. Those threats are totally irresponsible and uncalled for because MTC is just a sponsor and does not make football related decisions.”
Doeseb also took issue with Martin’s comments he made against other teams claiming that his team is financially stronger than its competitors.
“That is totally unprofessional and contrary to the truth because our office is inundated with Stars players calling to ask when Stars will get their prize monies after their team informed them that they can only get paid when the prize monies are released, amidst him boasting that his team has financial superiority over other teams.
“In accordance with our rules we submitted a report to the NFA, which is still seized with the matter, so it is now up to them to decide what action is to be taken against African Stars, if any. MTC by virtue of its core business does not need to be in football and they can take their money elsewhere tomorrow and it is soccer as a whole that will suffer because of one man that is blinded by his misplaced ego, but this has now gone too far.”
Approached for comment, Martin said the club would issue a press release in due course before expressing hope that this nasty episode will be finally put to bed.