The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Transition Committee has refuted claims that the 2020/2021 Kenyan Premier League season has been nullified.
Local football enthusiasts were left befuddled as unconfirmed reports of the league's nullification by the Sports Disputes Tribunal (SDT) rattled the whole country.
Migori Youth FC, Gusii FC, Dandora Love FC, Zoo FC, Kamungei United FC, Coastal Heroes FC, Mwatate United FC, Kisumu Allstars FC and Francis Ngira Okello filed a case at the SDT contesting the appointment of the FKF Transition Committee in May by Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed.
A ruling by Judge John Ohaga on Tuesday left different stakeholders deeply divided on its interpretation, with a section excitedly rushing to social media to share reports that the season had been invalidated.
However, in a statement released and signed by chairman General (retired) Maurice Oyugi on Friday, the Transition Committee sought to dispel the rumour, insisting that the ruling had no bearing on the final outcome of the 2021/2022 KPL season.
“The attention of the FKF Transition Committee has been drawn to a ruling by the Sports Dispute Tribunal petition number E021 of 2021 season has been invalidated,” the statement read in part.
“We would like to inform all the football stakeholders that the leagues have not been invalidated by the Tribunal and the league standings released by the FKF Transition Committee remains the same.
The statement further shared Judge Ohaga's orders given in the ruling.
“The decision made by the respondent herein contested, on May 13 to allow the continuation of the league matches was within its mandate and therefore not ultra vires,” Ohaga ruled.
“A declaration is hereby issued that the decision made by the FKF Transition Committee Head of Secretariat on May 13 breached the petitioners’ rights to fair administrative action in accordance with the Act and the FKF Constitution.
“A declaration is hereby issued that the first to sixth interested parties herein are duly appointed and the current judicial bodies and standing committees of the Football Kenya Federation in as far as their mandate is prescribed under the FKF Constitution,” Ohaga said.
From the above, it is clear that the Tribunal did not invalidate the league, Oyugi pointed out.
In an exclusive interview on Wednesday, FKF Nyamira County branch chairman, Luthers Mokua also sought to provide the facts.
Mokua, who was an interested party in the case, said those who rushed to their social media pages with misleading reports misunderstood Ohaga's ruling.
“What the SDT declared null and void are the decisions made by the Appeals Committee appointed by the Transition Committee,” Mokua said.
Mokua explained that the SDT found the Transition Committee to have usurped the responsibilities of the judicial and standing committees legally constituted by the expelled federation.
“Ohaga simply said that such decisions rested squarely on the shoulders of the legally established FKF judicial bodies,” Mokua said.
In a separate interview, the committee's head of league and competition, Ali Amour, said the reports were deceiving. “Those are baseless rumours,” Amour said.
“I was personally in court and I didn't hear judge Ohaga mention anywhere that the league had been nullified.”
