Nam athletics at crossroads

ATHLETICS Namibia (AN) finds itself at crossroads after there was no clear indication of who is in charge of the code despite a high-level meeting in Windhoek yesterday.

The meeting, called by Minister of Sport John Mutorwa, made little progress on how to resolve various issues in the embattled sport code, which now finds itself in deeper chaos than before. At the same meeting, IAAF Africa Area representative Leonard Chuene, who was requested to attend the meeting, maintained that he still supports the executive led by Alpha Kangueehi, despite a vote of no confidence which was instituted by the majority of AN affiliates.On the other hand, Government, through the Namibia Sports Commission (NSC), maintains that it will be in charge of the sport until a proper election has been organised to choose new leaders.The meeting, which was chaired by Mutorwa, failed to reach consensus on who is officially in charge now and there was also no indication of when the AN elective congress would take place.Representatives from the regions at the meeting complained about issues such as vacant positions of key persons such as the secretary general and treasurer, unaudited financial reports of the body, the lack of annual general meetings, the total lack of communication between the AN and its members and the wrong interpretation of the constitution.These complaints were not adequately addressed by AN president Alpha Kangueehi, who was also present.Furthermore, Chuene blamed the Ministry of Sport of taking sides by insisting that the NSC should be in charge of athletics.He charged that this meant the Government was disregarding the constitutions of both the IAAF and AN, in terms of which Kangueehi is the man in charge.”My question is why am I here if a decision has already been made by the higher authority,” Chuene said, referring to the NSC being in charge.He said he was in the country to assist AN in finding a solution to the problems that have been raised, but considering the stance that Government had taken, he suggested that he would opt for a different alternative.”I refuse to be dragged into this position.The AN has not been dissolved according to the structures that are in place and they are still the only recognised body according to the IAAF,” Chuene said.Director of Sport Vetumbuavi Veii blasted Chuene for accusing the Ministry of Sport of taking sides, saying that he should rather take the information presented to him on the situation and study it.”The Ministry has not taken a position in this and we are also not here to complicate the situation.You are the one who have taken sides, but we are merely trying to facilitate the process because we have been doing this since the beginning to find solutions in this code,” Veii said.Chuene said he was not a personal friend of Kangueehi and regarded himself as a transparent person who did not fabricate stories.”I am not a politician, but a very simple sports administrator.The IAAF will not allow its constitution to be ridiculed.I respect the position of Government on the matter, but I will prevail at the right time and will not be intimidated,” he said in his closing remarks.At the start of the meeting Mutorwa called on participants not to indulge in name-calling or blaming each other, but this happened anyway, as some members were upset about the general state of the association, while some asked who was really in charge of the code.Although Mutorwa said that the meeting was not in vain, it is still not clear what will happen next.Chuene is now expected to give a report to the IAAF, but the Government is not sure what action the world body will take, because the IAAF was in principle against Government’s placing the NSC in charge.Earlier, Mutorwa had received a letter from the IAAF head office, asking him to assist Chuene in resolving the athletics crisis, otherwise the IAAF would take action.At the same meeting, IAAF Africa Area representative Leonard Chuene, who was requested to attend the meeting, maintained that he still supports the executive led by Alpha Kangueehi, despite a vote of no confidence which was instituted by the majority of AN affiliates.On the other hand, Government, through the Namibia Sports Commission (NSC), maintains that it will be in charge of the sport until a proper election has been organised to choose new leaders.The meeting, which was chaired by Mutorwa, failed to reach consensus on who is officially in charge now and there was also no indication of when the AN elective congress would take place.Representatives from the regions at the meeting complained about issues such as vacant positions of key persons such as the secretary general and treasurer, unaudited financial reports of the body, the lack of annual general meetings, the total lack of communication between the AN and its members and the wrong interpretation of the constitution.These complaints were not adequately addressed by AN president Alpha Kangueehi, who was also present.Furthermore, Chuene blamed the Ministry of Sport of taking sides by insisting that the NSC should be in charge of athletics.He charged that this meant the Government was disregarding the constitutions of both the IAAF and AN, in terms of which Kangueehi is the man in charge.”My question is why am I here if a decision has already been made by the higher authority,” Chuene said, referring to the NSC being in charge.He said he was in the country to assist AN in finding a solution to the problems that have been raised, but considering the stance that Government had taken, he suggested that he would opt for a different alternative.”I refuse to be dragged into this position.The AN has not been dissolved according to the structures that are in place and they are still the only recognised body according to the IAAF,” Chuene said.Director of Sport Vetumbuavi Veii blasted Chuene for accusing the Ministry of Sport of taking sides, saying that he should rather take the information presented to him on the situation and study it.”The Ministry has not taken a position in this and we are also not here to complicate the situation.You are the one who have taken sides, but we are merely trying to facilitate the process because we have been doing this since the beginning to find solutions in this code,” Veii said.Chuene said he was not a personal friend of Kangueehi and regarded himself as a transparent person who did not fabricate stories.”I am not a politician, but a very simple sports administrator.The IAAF will not allow its constitution to be ridiculed.I respect the position of Government on the matter, but I will prevail at the right time and will not be intimidated,” he said in his closing remarks.At the start of the meeting Mutorwa called on participants not to indulge in name-calling or blaming each other, but this happened anyway, as some members were upset about the general state of the association, while some asked who was really in charge of the code.Although Mutorwa said that the meeting was not in vain, it is still not clear what will happen next.Chuene is now expected to give a report to the IAAF, but the Government is not sure what action the world body will take, because the IAAF was in principle against Government’s placing the NSC in charge.Earlier, Mutorwa had received a letter from the IAAF head office, asking him to assist Chuene in resolving the athletics crisis, otherwise the IAAF would take action.