…bidding adieu to Bra Mino
LIFE today offers several advantages that increase our ability to do much more than was possible in the past, but it has also just about as many disadvantages that cripple many of us. One of these is the fact that it makes people less self-reliant and more dependent on others, including machines and various other contrivances of convenience.
Of course, human beings have practiced interdependence for centuries and it is certainly very useful. It helps us achieve more then we can on our own. Indeed, because human beings were created to live in groups there are some very important ways in which we need to depend on each other. However, interdependence can also be very detrimental when people become hopelessly too dependent on others. While we should embrace and applaud institutions such as FNB Namibia and MTC for their unwavering financial assistance towards the development of local sports, yours truly has reservations about the manner in which certain clubs and associations go about to source sponsorships and funding. The marketing aspect in many a sports club, umbrella sports bodies and sports associations leaves a lot to be desired to say the least. Yours truly cannot get his finger on the pulse as to why both Black Africa and African Stars never bothered to embark on fundraising campaigns way ahead of their much anticipated participation in continental football. These two clubs, Stars in particular, are a distance ahead of any sporting entity locally and should have little trouble in collecting money through a variety of activities such as ticket lotteries, exhibition matches and many other social activities that include organizing gala dinners and even live music concerts. Black Africa must be applauded and certainly deserves a pat on the back for masterfully negotiating a deal with Air Namibia to fly would-be supporters to Johannesburg for its first leg match against South African glamour football club Kaizer Chiefs, but alas, why wait until the last minute to get their ducks in the row for such a brilliant idea. We should also applaud MTC Namibia for its professionalism by putting personal issues aside when they availed a staggering amount of N$200 000 to assist the Namibian champions for their CAF Championship League campaign – double the amount the club’s principal sponsor FNB Namibia forked out for the same purpose.
It takes two to tango isn’t?
It’s amazing that with just a week left before the first leg gets underway at home against the visiting Pedro Atletico from Angola, Stars are yet to advertise and market this mouth-watering encounter aggressively through media conferences and radio talk shows and the works! Let us hope and pray the Namibia Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) will make it a priority and pull out all stops to acquire broadcast rights to flight these matches live home and away since they are of definite national interest. Let me now take this opportunity to bid farewell to my hometown boy and former African Stars fullback, Merino Kandonga, whose untimely departure from the game of life has sent shockwaves through many communities and the entire football fraternity. On the playing field Merino took no prisoners, but off the field he was one of the kindest human beings to be around. He was kindhearted, humorous, generous and a gentle giant who could hardly harm a fly. Bra Mino, may your soul rest in eternal peace. I rest my case.
BY Carlos Kambaekwa