The Uganda Netball Federation (UNF) has had a torrid time under the leadership of Hon. Sarah Babirye Kityo since she was appointed president until now.
Where we are now could be a better place – seeing that the National Council of Sports withdrew the certificate of recognition of the federation due to all the governance issues.
World Netbal l(WN) acted similarly and provided a window for a reprieve for UNF to get their house in order with the delegation of a normalisation committee.
“The specified period of time during which the Normalisation Committee shall perform its functions shall expire as soon as it has fulfilled all of its tasks, but no Iater than 31 May 2024,” read a November 2023 letter from WN to NCS Chairperson Ambrose Tashobya.
Between then and now, what have we seen?
After mediation efforts for two years were brushed aside, the NCS withdrew the certificate of recognition. The involvement of the Hon. Minister of Education and Sports after that yielded no fruit either.
Hon. Sarah Babirye has caught up with the cheap politics of Ugandans resorting to hiding behind the good book when they’ve been caught with their hands in the cookie jar. Hon. Sarah isn’t the first disgraced leader to suggest a prayer day to “Wash away” their sins.
Away from the negativity, there have been signs of the phoenix rising in the UNF.
Upon realising that Hon Sarah Babirye Kityo signed documents illegally, Wales Netball and England Netball had the Normalization Committee sign new documents to confirm Uganda’s participation in International Test Matches slated for 8th-14th January and 20th-28th January.
The hosts are to cover the expenses for the She Cranes, save for air tickets and allowances, which are to be procured through the government of Uganda and NCS.
In a Wednesday, 29th November 2023, address by the Minister of State for Education and Sports to the Rt. Hon. Speaker and the Members of Parliament, Hon. Peter Ogwang, assured the house that despite withdrawing the certificate of recognition, the activities of the Africa-conquering She Cranes would not be affected.
This was because the government was committed to supporting their activities through the Normalization Committee as guided by World Netball and National Sports Act 2023.
Opportunity to rebuild the UNF
Hon. Peter Ogwang also communicated that the UNF was at will to re-apply for the certificate of recognition once the Normalization Committee was done with the streamlining process.
The normalisation committee is doing a tremendous job ensuring that the netball business stays operational as usual. We hope these efforts will be extrapolated into the entire UNF and see the sport blossoming again.
The normalisation committee is comprised of Ms. Peace Proscovia (athlete representative from the She Cranes), Ms. Cecilia Anyakoit (NCS Member), Ms. Leticia Namutebi (Member of the Commonwealth Games Uganda Athletes’ Commission), and the chair of the committee, Mr. Moses B Mwase (Vice President, Commonwealth Games Uganda).
2024 is the crack of a new dawn, and the only way is up. We are so excited about what the new year is bringing for the game of netball in Uganda.
Courtesy Photos
