Ntshingane kickstarts BFA presidential campaign
Kabelo Boranabi | Saturday August 24, 2024 06:00
Ntshingane is gunning for local football's highest seat against incumbent Maclean Letshwiti and former BFA vice president Tariq Babitseng at an elective congress to be held on September 14. Ntshingane, who is currently serving as the first vice president, launched his campaign manifesto at the Regent Hotel in Gaborone yesterday. Termed 'Marakanelo', Ntshingane's campaign manifesto features 11 key points of transition at the BFA. The 'Winning Eleven' seeks to improve stakeholder management, corporate governance, and also regional and youth development structures. The 'Winning Eleven' further looks to improve women's football, players' welfare, coaching, and administration. Ntshingane has listed handing back the Botswana Football League its autonomy and also improving the national teams' brand, mobilisation community, and former players' engagement. Speaking at the launch, Ntshingane said the Marakanelo manifesto is a commitment to take football to greater heights. He said his campaign outlines a comprehensive vision aimed at promoting inclusivity, integrity, commercialisation, innovation unity and passion within the game.
'We in this room are aware of the various serious allegations that have been floating about the BFA and can only hope that the mandated BFA authorities will at some point soon come out to address them,' he said.
'What is very clear is that the football community, and indeed the nation is in shock and find ourselves paralysed to salvage the situation. I can confirm that as with everyone, all this is news to me as I also get to learn of some of these allegations through the various social media platforms, sometimes and very often, notably out of concern, from yourselves (journalists),' said Ntshingane.
The former Zebras captain said there is a desperate need to go back to the drawing board, introspect as partners in the football fraternity and find solutions to take football back to its glory days. He said he stands as the right man to lead football in the next four years as the local game has recently seen its strength and potential diminish due to the external forces at the BFA and also the recurring bickering in the boardrooms. Ntshingane said this has halted the growth of football but with proper governance, football will take its rightful place as the country's most followed sport.
'All that has been happening, appeals after appeals, tribunals, court appearances, and yet less and less actual progress for that which has the potential to unite us, and indeed once did. I remember and indeed lived in times when the back pages glorified sports and sportsmen and not just politics. I am here to state boldly that we cannot be aligned with anyone who wishes to ignore the cries of the people and believes the status quo can possibly continue as it is,' said Ntshingane.
He, however, said Marakanelo does not have a lobby list as it is perceived and he is willing to work with anyone who is voted in at the next BFA national executive committee.