WINDHOEK – Paradoxical to the blessings granted by the Namibia Football Association (NFA) to newly-formed Okahandja United FC, formerly Military School Okahandja FC, to join the Namibia Premier League (NPL) under a new entity, the NDF yesterday dropped a fresh bombshell.
Military School FC, who were under the Namibian Defence Force (NDF) ownership when they won the Northwest First Division League, expected to be promoted to the NPL upon their victory but that was not to be the case as a result of Article 18(3) of the NFA Statutes, which prohibits “a natural or legal person (including holding companies and subsidiaries) to exercise control over more than one club competing in the same league or competition”. The NDF already owns Mighty Gunners which competes in the NPL.
As a result of the above prohibition, the NFA last month announced that the NDF had agreed to transfer ownership of the Military School to the Okahandja community under new ownership and name Okahandja United FC, which would then allow the team to be promoted under the name and status of Okahandja United FC to the NPL as the club was now under a new owner, a different legal persona, distinct and independent from the NDF.
But in a damning letter, signed off by Chief of the NDF John Mutua and delivered to the NPL office yesterday morning, the NDF dispelled and contradicted the NFA’s announcement that the Military School’s ownership and status were legally transferred to a new entity, saying the NDF hierarchy never authorised such a deal and further action will be taken.
The letter reads: “It has recently come to my attention, through the media, that the Military School Football Club, which is owned by the Defence Force Foundation (DFF) in the Ministry of Defence, has been renamed and its ownership has been transferred to the Okahandja United Football Club. It is my understanding that this unauthorized act was motivated by the fact that two of our teams, namely the Military School Football Club and Mighty Gunners Football Club, both qualified for a place in the NPL and this is in contravention of Article 18 (3) of the Namibia Football Act and Article 20 (2) of the FIFA Statute…”
“…As the Chairperson of DFF, which is responsible for the administration of sports activities in the Ministry of Defence, I would like to inform you and unequivocally state that, the Military School Football Club remains under the control of the Ministry of Defence and the name change and transfer of ownership was done without the knowledge and authorization from the competent authority. We are in the process of exploring possible solutions to the issue of having two teams belonging to one entity participate in the Premier League, and we will communicate our decision to your office as soon as possible,” concludes the letter, which was received by NPL chief administrator Tovey Hoebeb yesterday morning at 09h50.