George Gomez, the new chairman of the National Sports Council NSC has said infighting, which has bedeviled Gambian sports all these while and led to decadence and splinter groups must stop immediately in the new Gambia.
“There has been too much interference in the management of sports which has had serious effect on its practise. We need to give sports a new image, prominence and make it marketable to attract the Private Sector. Let’s ensure that only those who are genuine, knows and understands the art are voted into office. This is a new Gambia and we have to be positive in our approach with the intention to win at all cost and do away with the lack luster attitude and mediocrity in the management of sports. We have to start doing things the right way. The right way as far as I am concern is doing the right thing and at the right time and at the right place and that place shall be the place you decided to seek election in,”Mr Gomez said. The NSC chairman was writing on his Facebook page in reaction to complaints and defiance by some sports officials in the Kanifing Municipality KM, who claimed the NSC has no right to stop elective congresses due this month
in their zones,
Congresses in all the five zones in the Kanifing Municipality KM, have been put on hold by the National Sports council NSC until, according to the Council, investigations into multiple complaints are done. The Manjai , Serekunda West , Bakau, Serekunda East and Central zones were all due to hold elective congresses this month but officials in all the zones have told The Standard that they have been asked not to go ahead by the NSC because of some investigations.
”We found this very difficult to understand because the Council because according to our constitution it is the stakeholders t and not the NSC who can determine when elections can be in the zones one official complained.
Last night The Standard contacted the chairman of the National Sports Council George Gomez who confirmed that his Council had asked for all congress to be halted so that they can investigate serious administrative complaints lodged by stakeholders at many of the zones. He added that since these complaints affects even elections matters it is reasonable that elections are put on hold until investigations are done within the shortest possible time.
”You see the KM sports bodies are such that same people serve in both the zonal committees and the regional sports committee or Football association. So in many cases people who are suppose handle the complaints are themselves the subject of the complaints. So a lot of conflict of interests happens preventing any meaningful independent investigation to be done. That is why the NSC steps in to ensure there is an independent and fair examination of the issues in the shortest possible time to allow the elections to ahead,” Gomez said. He went further to explain in a write up on his Facebook page.
“There seem to be a serious misunderstanding about sports in the KMC Region. The National Sports Council received complaints from the Serekunda Central and Serekunda East zones about their committees and the KM Regional Sports Committee, KMRSC. The National Sports Council started an enquiry into those complaints and asked the KM Regional Sports Committee to defer their planned zonal elections until the enquiry is completed. Zonal congresses are one component of the complaints including financial matters against committees. KMRSC refused to adhere to our request and decided to go ahead with the elections.
There are now allegations that the NSC is politically motivated to cancel the Zonal elections. No way. Sports do not go along with politics and I have been too long in sports to allow politics and sentiments to dictate what we do in sports. We just want to get to the bottom of these complaints and allegations then allow the elected committees to carry on with their business.”
