The Botswana Premier League season is facing an unpleasant end over the issue involving the registration of Township Rollers’ fullback, Onkarabile Ratanang. The player is currently on the sidelines while his club faces sanctions after it emerged that he was registered outside the transfer window, contrary to the Botswana Football Association (BFA) play rules.
The players union has since said it has always raised concerns over such issues affecting the players. “If it is not a faked contract, it is unilateral termination of such a contract. We have also realised a lot of underhand tactics in the recruitment of players and because of the will to enforce the rules, the regulator is always reacting to issues. We need a regulator who must bring order and stop this selective application of the rules.
From where we sit, it is double standards. When we are both in the pool, we need to be worried about hygiene, no one must piss in the pool,” FUB secretary-general, Kgosana Masaseng said yesterday. Masaseng further said in recent years, the focus has been more on personalities than real issues. “This skewed system of operation creates a platform for some to abuse positions and target their adversaries. We want a clean game because it feeds our members and their families,” he said. Ratanang has missed at least three matches for his side and with the Zebras expected to start preparations for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, the left-footed player faces losing his place in the team. Masaseng said the union’s biggest worry is that Ratanang is a professional who has dedicated his life to playing football and it is being taken away from him. “He has nothing to do with his registration but remains the biggest loser.
Right now, we are heading into the next Zebras qualifiers, how do you justify his selection if he is deliberately kept on the sidelines? For the longest of times, Botswana football has been messed up by administrators whose interests are elsewhere and not in the game. What is professional about the league that still has cases of improperly registered players? To what level do we deal with these matters ahead of the league season? This is a shame,” he said. Masaseng further said some elements are just in football to destroy an industry that is providing for the players, the same ones who are the least considered in an industry that they make tick.
He said the first thing the union would like to see happening is for the BFA judicial bodies to function. He also said they are concerned that the BFA is only interested in pursuing matters of their choice adding that the selective application of the law is worrisome, especially since players are always on the receiving end. Masaseng went on to reveal that since 2020, they have been asking the BFA as the regulator, to allow for an audit of contracts filed by clubs. He said some players complain that their contracts have been fiddled with and therefore others end up walking away in protest because the BFA is not addressing their grievances. He also said this goes to show that players are still ‘orphans’ of the game. “The last time we had a case before the non-functional national dispute resolution chamber was in October 2020.
The question could be how do you create a dysfunctional system? Is it to simply tick the boxes? We see this as a mockery of a process and an insult to the players. But if you want to see the BFA working, bring any matter that they are personally interested in, it would be dealt with within a short space of time,” he said. Rollers have since stated that they will abide by all the BFA directions including the suspension of two of their officials.
