Sports Fund should not be diverted to other use,says MP Shinali

Ikolomani Member of Parliament Benard Shinali has urged the Government to ensure the Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund is appropriately utilised to serve the intended purpose of providing support to sports federations in the country.

The second term lawmaker who was also the captain of Bunge FC during the just concluded East Africa legislative games in Tanzania said local sports and athletes have been hit hard by covid-19 pandemic, and proper strategy should be laid in place to offer financial backing to all those affected.

“What’s ailing Kenyan sports is lack of consistent funding to our teams and players who are supposed to represent their respective clubs and national teams with honour and pride.

“Our Government should make sure that there’s enough in the sports fund to help facilitate success of all our sporting activities. No money should be diverted to other use because every entity has its own reserved resources” he noted.

In 2019,Kenyans demanded an explanation from the Government of how a whopping 1 billion shillings set aside for Sports Ministry was released to the Health Ministry.

It emerged that 1 billion shillings that had been allocated to support the kitty was paid out to facilitate the removal of mobile clinic containers from the National Youth Service Yard in Miritini.

Shinali,also vice chairman of the powerful Parliamentary Budget and Appropriation Committee further appealed to the sports ministry to prioritise their expenditure on upgrading all stalled sports facilities and build stadiums the ruling admnistration pledged in their pre-election agenda.

“Am well travelled and there was this time I was in Russia and realised the country has gym machines which are mechanically fixed on ground and they play an important role in the training for sports. As we all know a top-quality training facility is crucial to the realisation of success sports stories – whether the aim is to provide top-class facilities for elite professionals to train, or to develop the next generation of young players

“It’s important that we provide well equipped facilities to our youngsters who are so passionate about sports but they lack good environment to groom and perfect their skills” added the soft spoken legislator.

The Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund has collected Sh30.3 billion since it was operationalised in February 2019, Sports CS Amina Mohamed revealed in October this year.

The fund, whose main source of revenue are proceeds from betting, gaming and lotteries, was established to offer support to sports federations, training and technical, collected Sh8.1 billion between February and June 2019, a figure that rose to Sh10 billion in the 2019/20 financial year, but dipped to Sh6.8 billion in the 2020/21 financial year.

The construction of Jomo Kenyatta International Stadium in Kisumu, Wanguru Stadium in Kirinyaga, Posta Jamhuri Sports Ground, Nairobi and Kirigiti Stadium, Kiambu were all funded by proceeds from the kitty.

In 2017, the Jubilee administration had promised to initiate and complete the construction of six regional stadiums, whose delay in completion has come back to haunt it.

The stadiums in Wote, Makueni, Kamariny, Elgeyo Marakwet, Kirubia in Tharaka Nithi, Marsabit Stadium and Ruringu in Nyeri have a sore thumb in the face of Jubilee government as they have come to define their failed 2017 pre-election promises.

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