Treasury's move to repeal Sports Act 2013 risks discontent in sector

There are reports that the National Sports Fund established under the Sports Act 2013 is about to be repealed to pave way for a new fund under the Treasury which has already drawn up regulations and established what it calls the Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund citing the powers drawn from Section 24 (4) of the Public Finance Management Act 2012.

That there seems to be some level of secrecy surrounding the whole move to create a new fund that apparently cannibalises the Sports Act 2013 does not bode well for the development of sports in Kenya.

The existence of a Bill, cited as Sports (Amendment) Bill 2018 ready to be tabled for debate in Parliament, raises questions that need urgent answers. And this could be the reason for the hysterical reaction from the sports stakeholders and a deafening silence from The Treasury top brass and the technical people from the Sports ministry.

For instance, who drew up the Bill and at whose behest because sports federations say they are unaware of such document. Secondly, has it provided for public participation to get to that point? If not, why this apparent disdain for provisions of the law?

Therefore, rather than emotion informing the mooted plans, it is only reasonable that the whole issue be tackled rationally by first of all inviting the stakeholders to review the principles that informed the drawing up of the Sports Act 2013.

This is important because the National Sports Fund as envisaged in Part III of the Act is an important pillar of the other sections that establish Sports Kenya (construct, maintain and manage infrastructure) and the Kenya Academy of Sports (establish and manage sports academies).

The Act clearly spells out the source of monies towards the National Sports Fund. In Part III (2) (a), it expressly says "all proceeds of any sports lottery, taxes levied under the Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act, investments and any other payments required by this Act to be paid into the fund...” Clearly, this Part III was meant to be the pillar without which, the other two will ultimately collapse. And this is the significant aspect that the Treasury must seek to bring everyone on board, including the public, to deliberate on how to mitigate the repeal of Part III from Sports Act 2013.

There must have been a reason of enacting the Act in the first place. If memory serves us well, it took years of push and pull and over five Sports ministers before this Act came into force. So by just moving in to amend the Sports Act via a regulation is inviting disenchantment that could create some negative energy and that is not good for the sports community.

Unfair to dismantle

The Treasury, obviously, has reasons for swooping on the fund, but creating a parallel entity when already the principal Act is operational is engaging in illegalities. Whatever reason(s), including that because there is betting largesse, should be made public.

The Sports Act 2013 was meant to provide a prudent model of sports and financial management and thus any attempts to amend any sections of it must first be thought through. Drawing up regulations and amendment Bills without the input of the stakeholders amounts to negating the spirit of the very law that sought to solve the problem.

Again, the action by The Treasury only reinforces the contempt with which sports in Kenya is treated right from the appointment of Sports ministers, Principal Secretaries and the whole kit and caboodle of Youth and Sports docket. It is urgent that all 67 active federations, the National Olympic Committee of Kenya and the Kenya National Sports Council should be roped in to sift through the contentious tenets of the Act before thinking of repealing it.

It will be unfair to dismantle the National Sports Fund through a fiat just because The Treasury is salivating at the betting and lotteries honeycomb.