Echesa forms team to plan BAK elections
Sports cabinet secretary Rashid Echesa (middle) addressing Boxing Association of Kenya (BAK) Counties chairmen at his office in Nairobi on December 6, 2018. PHOTO | AYUMBA AYODI |
What you need to know:
- The meeting agreed to expand the voting counties from the current nine to 19, which will include the Kenya Defence, Kenya Police and Kenya Prisons.
- BAK secretary general Paul Mung’ori indicated that the committee shall come up with modalities of the election and if they fail to agree, then there will be the possibility of forming a caretaker committee to organize for a new election.
Sport cabinet secretary Rashid Echesa has formed a 12-man committee that will look into the modalities of holding a free and fair Boxing Association of Kenya (BAK) elections.
Echesa, who was speaking after he chaired a meeting of chairmen from BAK Counties on Wednesday, directed the committee to meet on Thursday and give him a comprehensive report on Friday.
The meeting was brokered by Athletics Kenya president Jackson Tuwei that saw Echesa and BAK president John Kameta bury the hatchet after months of disagreement.
Anthony “Jamal” Otieno and Kennedy “Kentrack” Otieno, who are the only candidates vying for BAK presidency, were told to nominate six members each to the committee.
“This afternoon, I chaired a meeting of officials from BAK Counties, the Kenya Defence Forces, Kenya Police and Kenya Prisons among others to unlock the stalemate that is surrounding the process of conducting BAK executive committee elections,” said Echesa after a meeting that was also attended by Kameta.
“I formed a 12-man committee that will come up with modalities on how to conduct the forthcoming elections and give me a report of the same on the December 7, 2018.”
The meeting agreed to expand the voting counties from the current nine to 19, which will include the Kenya Defence, Kenya Police and Kenya Prisons.
BAK secretary general Paul Mung’ori indicated that the committee shall come up with modalities of the election and if they fail to agree, then there will be the possibility of forming a caretaker committee to organize for a new election.
“BAK executive mandate expired in 2017 and there was a general consensus that most of these posts stop to exist. If it fails there will be a negotiated democracy before a proper election is held,” said Mung’ori.
Kentrack will now lead his group of six that has Ngaira Mutevesi, S.K. Njoroge, Boniface Odhiambo, Ben Mainge and Cecilia Wairimu.
Jamal will head his group that has Isaac Mbote, David Munuhe, Crispin Onyango, Benjamin Musa and John Waweru.
“We are satisfied with the resolutions thought many sacrifices had to be made because the game is larger and more important than us,” said Kentrack.
“All that we want is a free and fair election. I know we shall come to a good conclusion that will benefit the game,” said Jamal.
