Coastal giants and one of Namibia’s oldest football clubs, Blue Waters FC, yesterday distanced itself from a letter dated 6 August 2020, written by eight clubs to the Namibia Sports Commission (NSC) and to sports minister Agnes Tjongarero, wherein the clubs blasted the minister and tried to influence the NSC.

The said letter of 6 August was written by Citizens, Blue Waters, Julinho Sporting, Tigers, Mighty Gunners, Young African, Civics and Orlando Pirates. The status of Civics and Pirates, which were both relegated last season, remains unclear and a big bone of contention between the expelled Namibia Premier League (NPL) and Namibia Football Association (NFA).

In their letter, the eight clubs, which are perceived to be pro-NFA and anti the Patrick Kauta-led NPL, accused Tjongarero of interfering in local football matters and not allowing the NFA to fully “clean up” football as desired.
The clubs, which are yet to officially resign as affiliates of the expelled NPL, in their letter also tried to influence the NSC to prematurely reject the NPL’s recent application to register as a new sports body as a Section 21 company. The NPL has already registered a league with the Business and Intellectual Property Authority (BIPA) as an association not for gain (Section 21 company). 

But late yesterday, the leadership of Blue Waters wrote to the minister and NSC to distance the club from the letter of 6 August, and further used the opportunity to apologise to minister Tjongarero for the “unfortunate” accusations thrown at her persona by the said rogue clubs. 
Blue Waters, in yesterday’s letter, strongly maintained that they remain a member of the expelled NPL and are fully behind the efforts of the league to professionalise local football through a new structure as per the league’s application to the NSC.
The coastal team, which is Namibia’s second oldest football club established in 1936 just nine years after the establishment of the oldest club Tigers in 1927, yesterday further revealed that the club’s secretary Vilho Tostao Imbili, who is an ex-officio member of the club’s executive committee, is behind the cataclysm that brought the club’s name and reputation into disrepute through the 6 August letter. The club promised to decisively deal with Imbili as provided for in their constitution.

“It is with the above in mind that we wish to notify that the position of Blue Waters in relation to this impasse remains the same as recorded in the minutes of the last NPL congress held on 26 September 2019, and prima facie evidence exists in this regard in line with Section 20.5 and 20.6 of the Blue Waters constitution,” reads the club’s statement.
As of late yesterday, New Era Sport was also reliably informed that the leadership of Citizens FC were at loggerheads, and cracks were widening within the club’s top leadership, with some yearning for a future in professional football under the NPL flag while others were pushing to join the league to be established by NFA. It now remains to be seen where Citizens, which is still an NPL affiliate, will be heading. 

BA tells supporters not to be deceived 
Yesterday, Black Africa (BA) former interim chairman Cassius Moetie wrote to invite and call upon the club’s supporters to a meeting that is aimed at deciding the club’s future, saying the team’s future cannot be decided by the club’s current leadership but only by the supporters themselves. Moetie is a member of the self-styled NFA-aligned Progressive Forces group, which enjoys an ambiguous relationship with NFA president Ranga Haikali.

But BA’s leadership late yesterday swiftly came out to rubbish Moetie’s invitation to the club’s supporters, saying the club has not sanctioned any such supporters meeting and that it is just another ploy by Moetie to “execute his dubious agenda”.
“The management of BA has noticed amongst the list that a former executive who resigned from the BA executive and who failed to execute his dubious agenda, has called a so-called BA supporters meeting for the 16th August 2020. This disgruntled individual even has the audacity to randomly write the names of unsuspecting people as the ones who called the alleged supporters meeting. BA is aware of desperate antics such as writing letters to cause confusion among supporters and football followers because of the challenges in Namibian football. BA would like to inform its countrywide fan base that the purported supporters meeting is not sanctioned by the club and is rejected with the contempt it deserves. We urge our countrywide fans to be vigilant of desperate attempts to cause divisions and harm of our reputable brand … BA, as the current MTC NPL champions remain committed to the NPL and have signed up to the legally registered NPL that pursues the route of professionalism of football in this country,” said BA.
- ohembapu@nepc.com