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‘I want to take football back to the days when villagers would sit round a small transistor radio to listen to commentators take them through the game when their favourite team was playing
Former Youth Fund Chair Evans Gor Semelang’o is the latest entry into the race for Football Kenya Federation’s presidency. Gor enters the already crowded field of aspirants in the wake of a recently aborted FKF Annual General Meeting. While announcing his candidature, Gor sought to break ranks with other aspirants who in their campaigns have blamed the federation’s president Sam Nyamweya for all the woes in local football.
“I would like to officially announce my candidature as the best person who can steer Kenyan football back to the days of glory,” Gor told The Nairobian.
“Unlike everyone else, I do not belong to the school of thought that Nyamweya has done nothing for the game. No, he has played his part and even outlived his usefulness,” Gor added.
Having tried his luck at national politics, Gor said that he has learnt enough and his competitors should be ready to face him as he seeks to commercialise local football to stop over dependence on handouts.
“I want to take football back to the days when villagers would sit round a small transistor radio to listen to commentators take them through the game when their favourite team was playing. We must have a trickle down effect that will make every stakeholder benefit.
“I have run a successful programme with the World Bank on behaviour change in football and during the project, I worked closely with the footballers under 16, 17 and 18 years,” said Gor, adding that his track record with the youth speaks for itself, especially in Nairobi slums and beyond.
With all the fame, Gor will first have to ward off competition from fast-rising Nick Mwendwa and Ken Oliech. Whereas Oliech is a former footballer who has successfully founded and managed an academy, Mwendwa remains popular.
Gor revealed that he has been in talks with a number of stakeholders and the likely FKF delegates and made it clear to them that his first priority will be the current crop of footballers by building on the youth.
