From the Sidelines

THE Namibia Football Association (NFA) now has new faces among its executive members after it held its Congress at Soccer House last weekend.

Four new executive members were added to the committee, while Kornelius Kapenda and Pele Muatunga were the only two who remained. They now join president Petrus Damaseb, vice president John Muinjo and treasurer Pro Rijatua, who all still have two years to go.The new members are Jacky Gertze, Korbinian Amutenya, Matthew Kalihonda and Imms Nangolo.The nation has been calling for the former executive members to give way to new blood and this has happened to a certain degree.Why only to a certain degree? Damaseb and Muinjo will still be calling the shots while these new members are settling in.Although Kapenda and Muatunga are still in the mix of things, they have not been too influential in many respects and in all honesty, they are just occupying the seats for political reasons.In any case, the focus will now be on the new members who have taken up office for the next two years.This term is long enough for any of these members to prove that they can make a difference in the game.In fact, the executive members, especially the new ones, will be guaranteed longer terms if they do a decent job in bringing about the needed changes in the game.People in Namibia love to be in positions of power and for the executive members, this should serve as a challenge, but not a comfort zone where they see themselves earning extra cash.The challenge should be to show that they are able to deliver the goods, and this should be visible through their actions, not just talk.The time for talking should now be forgotten.There was a football indaba which looked at the way forward for the game, Fifa instructors came in on numerous occasions for workshops, the media have been vocal in calling for change – now is the time to act.There should be no more excuses that there is no quorum for meetings, as this was one of the biggest problems of the previous executive committee.All that is needed now is to put the Strategic Plan to work.Although we don’t know much about the real issues in that Strategic Plan, it better be good, as the ball is now in the NFA’s court.We don’t want this plan to be delayed as was the case with the appointment of the technical director, because it will then be too late to make sure that Namibia will be ready for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.The most important thing is for the executive committee to realise the objectives that they have set out in the Strategic Plan.It is absolutely crucial for them to set time-frames for when they want to achieve their objectives and tangible measures should be in place to realise this without major hiccups.Professionals should be found to help achieve some of these objectives, as the current administration has not been one of the best in years.To get professionals might cost money, but the association is on the brink of committing itself to a N$40 million deal over five years (not N$14 million as reported earlier) with the Namibia Football Consortium (NFC) and there is no reason why there wouldn’t be enough money.I am sure the NFC wants to improve the standard of the game from especially the grassroots level and the right people are needed in the office to be able to make that a success.It will also be advisable for the new members who entered the fray to first look at the shortcomings and problems that they had identified when they were still outside the set-up and to address them to avoid a repeat thereof.It should also not be end of the road for the members who lost out in the elections, but a beginning for them to give their input through advice from the sidelines as much as they can.The bottom line is, there is no time for accusations, backstabbing, jealousy and unnecessary chitchat in this game because it is in a dire need to be picked up from its current embarrassing state.The media have been accused of misinforming the nation by not having their facts correct, while accusations have also been made that some journalists instigate fights among football officials, players and administrators.The point is, the media, especially this newspaper, will write what they consider as newsworthy and in the interest of the readers.Officials in the football fraternity have the duty to be honest in their dealings too.This is where a high level of transparency will be required from the new member, and they should also be responsible for their actions.They now join president Petrus Damaseb, vice president John Muinjo and treasurer Pro Rijatua, who all still have two years to go.The new members are Jacky Gertze, Korbinian Amutenya, Matthew Kalihonda and Imms Nangolo.The nation has been calling for the former executive members to give way to new blood and this has happened to a certain degree.Why only to a certain degree? Damaseb and Muinjo will still be calling the shots while these new members are settling in.Although Kapenda and Muatunga are still in the mix of things, they have not been too influential in many respects and in all honesty, they are just occupying the seats for political reasons.In any case, the focus will now be on the new members who have taken up office for the next two years.This term is long enough for any of these members to prove that they can make a difference in the game.In fact, the executive members, especially the new ones, will be guaranteed longer terms if they do a decent job in bringing about the needed changes in the game.People in Namibia love to be in positions of power and for the executive members, this should serve as a challenge, but not a comfort zone where they see themselves earning extra cash.The challenge should be to show that they are able to deliver the goods, and this should be visible through their actions, not just talk.The time for talking should now be forgotten.There was a football indaba which looked at the way forward for the game, Fifa instructors came in on numerous occasions for workshops, the media have been vocal in calling for change – now is the time to act.There should be no more excuses that there is no quorum for meetings, as this was one of the biggest problems of the previous executive committee.All that is needed now is to put the Strategic Plan to work.Although we don’t know much about the real issues in that Strategic Plan, it better be good, as the ball is now in the NFA’s court.We don’t want this plan to be delayed as was the case with the appointment of the technical director, because it will then be too late to make sure that Namibia will be ready for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.The most important thing is for the executive committee to realise the objectives that they have set out in the Strategic Plan.It is absolutely crucial for them to set time-frames for when they want to achieve their objectives and tangible measures should be in place to realise this without major hiccups.Professionals should be found to help achieve some of these objectives, as the current administration has not been one of the best in years.To get professionals might cost money, but the association is on the brink of committing itself to a N$40 million deal over five years (not N$14 million as reported earlier) with the Namibia Football Consortium (NFC) and there is no reason why there wouldn’t be enough money.I am sure the NFC wants to improve the standard of the game from especially the grassroots level and the right people are needed in the office to be able to make that a success.It will also be advisable for the new members who entered the fray to first look at the shortcomings and problems that they had identified when they were still outside the set-up and to address them to avoid a repeat thereof.It should also not be end of the road for the members who lost out in the elections, but a beginning for them to give their input through advice from the sidelines as much as they can.The bottom line is, there is no time for accusations, backstabbing, jealousy and unnecessary chitchat in this game because it is in a dire need to be picked up from its current embarrassing state.The media have been accused of misinforming the nation by not having their facts correct, while accusations have also been made that some journalists instigate fights among football officials, players and administrators.The point is, the media, especially this newspaper, will write what they consider as newsworthy and in the interest of the readers.Officials in the football fraternity have the duty to be honest in their dealings too.This is where a high level of transparency will be required from the new member, and they should also be responsible for their actions.