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A team of former Kenya internationals have called upon President Uhuru Kenyatta to pardon Tediam Rodgers, popularly known as Teddy, who is a death row inmate at Kamiti Maximum Prison. Teddy who played for Mathare United and Utalii FC in his heydays was convicted for robbery with violence in 2003.
Speaking at Kamiti, the group of former Harambee Stars players expressed joy to be reunited with their teammates who are serving various sentences at the country’s maximum security prison.
Football Kenya Federation’s presidential hopeful, Ken Oliech, who was among the organisers of the visit, shed tears when he saw three of his former Dagoretti Santos teammates for the first time since 2000. “We came here to visit our colleagues who loved and lived football, but due to bad management of Kenyan soccer, they ended up in crime while trying to fend for their families,” said Oliech.
It was Radio Jambo’s sports presenter and former Kenyan international Fred Arocho who called upon Uhuru to pardon Teddy. “I am pleading with President Uhuru to kindly give Teddy a second chance in life so that our former colleague could get an opportunity to live again and possibly participate positively in rehabilitating other footballers who still take their freedom for granted,” said Arocho.
Arocho who played against Teddy during the 1998/9 football season recalled the good old days, saying that Teddy was one of Kenya’s most skillful offensive mid-fielders. According to Arocho, prison warders at Kamiti have confirmed that Teddy has changed a great deal and learnt his lesson.
During their visit to Kamiti on Saturday, October 10, 2015, Oliech, Arocho, Boniface Ambani and Francis Xavier donated playing kits, training gear and lots of foodstuff to the inmates and even played a friendly match against Kamiti Football Club.
In august 2015, The Nairobian highlighted the plight of Teddy and other ex-Mathare footballers whose criminal activities landed them in prison. Teddy talked about his last robbery outing that got him arrested in June 2000 when “things didn’t work out as planned,” and he lost a friend in a botched robbery while he and another accomplice were arrested.
“I was charged with robbery with violence. My case dragged for a long time and I was in in remand for three years. In 2003, the Court of Appeal sentenced me to death. During my days in remand, life was tough. I lost my son’s mother and the love of my life in 2002,” Teddy told The Nairobian in an earlier interview.
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