Kenyan football drama continues

Rapid Deployment Unit officers escort FKF vice president McDonald Mariga to Three Steers hotel in Meru, on November 7, 2026. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

Ugly scenes of violence resurfaced in Kenyan football on Saturday, this time not in the stadium but in the boardroom.

And it was when Football Kenya Federation (FKF) delegates expelled deputy president McDonald Mariga and six National Executive Committee members allied to him in a chaotic Special General Meeting (SGM) at a hotel in Meru.

The federation that many thought was on path to recovery when it came to power in 2024, has literally slipped into a sorry state with endless leadership and governance wrangles coupled by financial misappropriation allegations. Kandanda House has become a pale shadow of its former self with the yearlong frosty relationship between president Hussein Mohammed and Mariga not only affecting its operations but also the running of the game in the country.

It will be interesting to see how world football governing body, Fifa and Confederation of African Football (CAF) whose representatives were at the SGM, will react to the saddening scenes from hell under the slopes of Mt Kenya.

Mariga, a former Harambee Stars midfielder, arrived at the venue like a king escorted by a squadron of security officers in full combat amid tension with allegations of goons outside the venue. But he was later expelled in absentia together with his faction after being accused of gross misconduct with only 66 delegates out of 92 attending the meeting which was delayed to start by almost three hours.

The first Kenyan to win Uefa Champions League together with Gabriel Mgendi (Coast), Dan Shikanda (Nairobi), Collins Kalee (Nyanza), Robert Macharia (Central), Bernard Lagat (Upper Rift Valley) and Violet Kerubo (Women Rep) were all shown the door by 65 of the 66 present delegates. The meeting recommended further disciplinary actions to be taken against them at judicial bodies of FKF, CAF and Fifa. The SGM was occasioned with acts of violence that left the owners of the facility counting losses after police lobbed teargas in an attempt to take charge of the chaotic scene. The unfolding painted a bad picture of Kenyan football as the country prepares to co-host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) alongside Uganda and Tanzania.

While responding to request on the floor from AFC Leopards chairman Boniface Ambani, the only delegate who voted against the expulsion decision on all the seven members, to embrace dialogue, FKF president Hussein Mohammed reiterated that he had convened several meetings with the former Kenyan international-led faction giving them a wide berth.

FKF president Hussein Mohammed confers with Fifa and CAF representatives after the Special General Meeting at Three Star hotel in Meru on November 7, 2026. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

“For the record, all the seven NEC members, who the congress has taken action against were invited to submit their submissions, none of them did. A notice was issued to them, and they never responded in writing and never sent a representative. And as you have witnessed today, they are not present before you to address the charges against them. In that regard, we had to proceed with the meeting as convened. We will never give up on Kenyan football, there’s no going back. We must fix it and it will not be business as usual,” said Hussein.

But even as Mariga defended the decision of arriving at the venue under tight security, he hinted at seeking a legal address after being blocked from attending the meeting with delegates allied to him.

“How can you expel someone who has not been given a chance to defend himself. The same way Fifa told us to give him a fair hearing, is what we are also asking for. We are just paying the price for fighting corruption. We are going to seek advice from our lawyers before taking the next step,” said Mariga.

“I came with the security as a precaution because we had intelligence there were some goons around. When I returned there with true delegates, we were denied entry. Most of those who voted are not bonafide delegates.”

Sports lawyer Raphael Omala believes the removal of the dissenting NEC members was not procedural.

“I’m shocked with the procedure that was undertaken. Those members should have been called to defend themselves, given an opportunity to be heard so that their conduct can be deliberated. That one is one of the grounds taken against them that can be challenged. It’s supposed to be a trial and I know in the end they were to be removed but the procedure wasn’t right. If they are challenged in the tribunal, I’m sure that decision will be stayed,” said Omala.

But for former FKF Secretary General Lordvick Aduda, the scenes damaged the reputation of Kenyan football.

“I think football lost today because there are some decisions prior to, during and after the SGM that are anti-football. But I hope those were genuine delegates and their decision is for the best interest of Kenyan football, and will help to sort the mess once and for all. And if they aren’t genuine, the resolutions might lack legality, and if there are games played then the game is in a bad place,” said Aduda.