Football hooliganism has no place in society

I was weaned from attending football matches involving AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia in the late 1980s. That was when I took a full dose of teargas during a game between the two.

It was on a beautiful sunny Saturday sometimes in 1988 when I left my house for Bukhungu stadium in Kakamega adorned in my favourite T-shirt, jeans and a pair of Zico sandals.

I took my position on the lush green grass at the Russia side where normally there would be excitement as taunts flew from one side to the other. Often, the jibes would not escalate into anything serious, but the possibility never was far.

On that day, AFC took the lead but Gor equalised a few minutes later. A little while later, there was a hard tackle and all hell broke loose. Everybody took to their heels; I was right there but one of my sandals got disengaged during the charge to safety. I couldn’t leave it behind so I turned back to pick it up at the exact time a teargas canister landed on it and discharged.

I cannot sufficiently express the trauma, but suffice it to say, if anybody points a teargas canister at you, you had better be on your way faster than a rocket; it’s a nasty gas that makes you remember you don’t want to be with the Lord so soon.

I had this recollection last Sunday when I was caught in traffic near Nyayo stadium in Nairobi on my way to work. I became agitated because I was getting late for the office but then, I saw the throng of fans; like the wildebeest migration, leisurely crossing the road and holding traffic. As rowdy as matatu drivers and touts are, they know they are no match for football fans, especially Gor fans, and they held their peace, waiting for an opening to move on. I had a feeling there would be trouble and was vindicated minutes later as I watched drama unfold on the screen. AFC fans could not take the heat and decided to irreverently get out of the kitchen.

Someone aptly opined football is a game played by gentlemen and watched by hooligans. There is little consolation in knowing football hooliganism is not a Kenyan preserve, but ours is tinged by a primeval idiocy that places the hooligans at a marginally higher pedestal than primates not endowed with conscience.

Some miscreants masquerading as football fans go to the stadium high on banned substances; cannabis sativa and illicit alcoholic drinks. Many are social misfits seeking an opportunity to exercise their primitive beastly cravings even as others seek to vent their frustrations over perceived injustices. These loathsome characters rob the beautiful game of the glint and allure it should have as a social activity that brings diverse groups together for a change; irrespective of their political, cultural and tribal groupings.

Football clubs should be made to account for the behaviour of their fans. AFC and Gor fans have time and again proved incorrigible; going as far as stoning motorists, premises and traders in town. They must be punished alongside their clubs. One way of doing this is force the teams to play in empty stadiums. Loss of gate collections might act as impetus for clubs to call their fans to order. Stadia management should create sturdy buffer zones while the government endeavours to isolate the more troublesome fans and ban them from attending matches for life. It is possible.

The writer is a correspondent for The Standard