•It's precisely because of politics that the country's football is wallowing in limbo.
•The next regime must put its foot down and resolve the Fifa standoff once and for all.
The battle of supremacy in the contentious August 9 presidential election has finally landed in the corridors of justice.
A battery of lawyers are holding down the fort for interested parties at the Supreme Court of Kenya where seven judges, led by Chief Justice Martha Koome, are hearing the presidential petition challenging William Ruto's win.
As a sports columnist, one wonders what business I have expatiating on the matter.
There is a good reason why local football stakeholders are quaking in the boots ahead of the Supreme Court decision.
Allow me to jog your memory a bit in an effort to justify their concerns as I also debunk the myth that sports and politics lack a common agenda.
It's precisely because of politics that the country's football is wallowing in limbo. Kenya landed a far-reaching ban from the world football governing body, Fifa owing to third-party interference by the government.
This was after Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed contravened Fifa Statutes by expelling the elected federation and appointing a caretaker committee to run the game.
A resultant Fifa suspension imposed and later ratified in March has kept Kenyan teams out of the international limelight. Kenyans are now crossing their fingers that the ongoing presidential tussle will solve the puzzle.
Caught up in the middle of the raging Supreme Court battle are presidential candidates William Ruto of the Kenya Kwanza Alliance and his Azimio la Umoja One Kenya rival Raila Odinga.
Fortunately, both leaders have exhibited a soft spot for football in the various leadership capacities they've held in the past.
For instance, other than being the patron of 19-time Kenyan Premier League champions Gor Mahia, Raila has on numerous occasions expressed solidarity with the national team, Harambee Stars.
Only recently, Raila's intervention saw President Uhuru Kenyatta gift traditional giants Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards Sh12 million each.
Ruto's benevolence has equally hit the headlines. In April 2019, he made good his promise and presented some Sh50 million he had earlier pledged to Harambee Stars.
On November 12, he again gave out Sh1 million after the team's 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Comoros at the Moi Stadium, Kasarani.
The donation was meant to motivate the players ahead of the second leg encounter in Moroni.
In his manifesto unveiled at Nyayo Stadium on June 7, Odinga pledged to fund sports entities, improve standards and management in the sector and enhance transparency and accountability.
Besides promising to create a sports cabinet comprising county representatives, Odinga promised to foster talent development in Kenyan schools. He also promised to improve coaching standards.
Equally, speaking during the Kenya Kwanza manifesto launch at the Kasarani Stadium on June 30, Ruto said his administration would build a sports garment industry in the country.
The United Democratic Alliance party leader also pledged an improved sports kitty.
Key to note is that both leaders have prioritised sports funding. Our national teams have grappled with deep-seated financial challenges to an extent of withdrawing from competitions.
Hopefully, whoever emerges victor will boost the kitty as promised.
Kenya needs unrelenting and unequivocal government support to enhance our rating on the global stage.
The next regime must firmly put its foot down and resolve the Fifa standoff once and for all.