Football needs more members: Champagne

A top Fifa official has warned that the current small composition of the Namibia Football Association’s (NFA) affiliates can lead to more manipulation in the game.

Namibia has 16 members affiliated to the mother body, and Fifa’s Special Delegate, Jerome Champagne, believes that there should be more representation from several other members to ensure democracy and more transparency in the game. Champagne, who was in Namibia at the weekend to witness the election of a new NFA president, said Namibia, compared to other countries, has a rather small number of people involved in voting for key positions on the association’s executive.At the weekend, John Muinjo was elected as the new NFA president and will serve for the next four years.There are eight other executive members, including a vice president and treasurer.The NFA has 16 affiliates of which 13 are divided according to the political regions of the country, with the exception of the Namibia Premier League (NPL) and the Rural Football Development Federation (RFDF), which serves as an associate member.Champagne argues that there should be more affiliates such as a Referees’ Committee, the Women’s Football Committee and the Coaches’ Association who should also have a say in the election process.In fact, Namibia has no formal structures for the coaches and women’s committees.He said it was important for Namibia to consider more representation, by considering other stakeholders for a fair process in especially electing leaders.”The smaller the general assembly (affiliates), the easier it will be for them to manipulate and dictate matters.This is very dangerous and it is not encouraged by Fifa,” he said.He said the statues of the association’s constitution are not correct and a lot of other amendments have to be made to make it more football friendly.The NFA’s Constitutional Review Process is scheduled for early next year and a high-level technical team from Fifa headquarters will be in Namibia to facilitate the process.Champagne asked Hendrik Dawids, the other presidential candidate who lost by nine votes to six to Muinjo, to work with the new executive committee in reviewing the constitution.”I want him to work with Muinjo because his knowledge of the game is extremely valuable, as I have gathered,” he said.Champagne also reacted to a scuffle during the congress which involved two representatives of the Otjozondjupa Region, saying that he had never seen something like that before.He said the incident painted an ugly picture of Namibian football and should never happen again.”If these fights are continuing like this, Namibia will miss the boat for the 2008 African Nations Cup finals in Ghana as well as the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.I am saying this because Fifa does not tolerate chaos in the game at all.People should work together and respect each other to obtain results.Their efforts should be beneficial for the players in the end,” he said.Champagne said Fifa also did not tolerate tribalism and warned that football authorities should refrain from the practice and individuals should concentrate their efforts on advancing the game at all levels.Champagne, who was in Namibia at the weekend to witness the election of a new NFA president, said Namibia, compared to other countries, has a rather small number of people involved in voting for key positions on the association’s executive.At the weekend, John Muinjo was elected as the new NFA president and will serve for the next four years.There are eight other executive members, including a vice president and treasurer.The NFA has 16 affiliates of which 13 are divided according to the political regions of the country, with the exception of the Namibia Premier League (NPL) and the Rural Football Development Federation (RFDF), which serves as an associate member.Champagne argues that there should be more affiliates such as a Referees’ Committee, the Women’s Football Committee and the Coaches’ Association who should also have a say in the election process.In fact, Namibia has no formal structures for the coaches and women’s committees.He said it was important for Namibia to consider more representation, by considering other stakeholders for a fair process in especially electing leaders.”The smaller the general assembly (affiliates), the easier it will be for them to manipulate and dictate matters.This is very dangerous and it is not encouraged by Fifa,” he said.He said the statues of the association’s constitution are not correct and a lot of other amendments have to be made to make it more football friendly.The NFA’s Constitutional Review Process is scheduled for early next year and a high-level technical team from Fifa headquarters will be in Namibia to facilitate the process.Champagne asked Hendrik Dawids, the other presidential candidate who lost by nine votes to six to Muinjo, to work with the new executive committee in reviewing the constitution.”I want him to work with Muinjo because his knowledge of the game is extremely valuable, as I have gathered,” he said.Champagne also reacted to a scuffle during the congress which involved two representatives of the Otjozondjupa Region, saying that he had never seen something like that before.He said the incident painted an ugly picture of Namibian football and should never happen again.”If these fights are continuing like this, Namibia will miss the boat for the 2008 African Nations Cup finals in Ghana as well as the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.I am saying this because Fifa does not tolerate chaos in the game at all.People should work together and respect each other to obtain results.Their efforts should be beneficial for the players in the end,” he said.Champagne said Fifa also did not tolerate tribalism and warned that football authorities should refrain from the practice and individuals should concentrate their efforts on advancing the game at all levels.