Clubs cry foul as claims of poor officiating rock Kenyan Premier League
Football
By
Gilbert Wandera
| Apr 21, 2015
The Kenyan Premier League (KPL) entered its seventh week with controversy over poor officiating hitting headlines.
The match between Gor Mahia and Sofapaka was stopped for nearly 10 minutes following crowd trouble as fans protested decisions made by centre referee.
However, it is now emerging that many clubs have been at the receiving end especially after Fifa accredited referees were barred from handling the top league.
According to Gor Mahia Deputy Secretary General Ronald Ngala, the calibre of officials who are handling the KPL is too low yet those who make the appointments continue to defend them.
“This is a top tier league and needs top referees. As it is, KPL is using referees who never passed the PET exams and we have been told that other referees can only come in from June when another test is supposed to be held.
“In our case for example, we have played seven matches yet four of those have been officiated by one referee. It clearly shows that there are inadequate referees. There is a big problem and it needs to be addressed,” he said.
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It is a sentiment supported by Faiz Magak, a former Gor Mahia vice chairman who has asked both the KPL and Football Kenya Federation (FKF) to work together in resolving this issue.
“KPL ought not to continue using unqualified referees. They are a big let down especially to the fans who are spending a lot of their resources and time to come and watch matches.
“The league company must recognise that FKF are in charge of referees and seek to work with them to get the right personnel for this job otherwise we are staring at a disaster,” he said.
Bandari Technical Director Edward Oduor also agrees and points out at their midweek match against Tusker last Wednesday.
“The referee who handled the match was below par. He denied us two clear penalties and it was obvious that this was a big match for him to handle,” he said.
Tusker coach Francis Kimanzi admits that indeed officiating on that day was suspect, claiming his side was denied a genuine goal.
“Regarding our match against Bandari, the officiating was bad. We scored a goal and it was disallowed but with no good reason. I also watched a match between Muhoroni and Ushuru and it was badly handled. However, I don’t think the problem is because we don’t have Fifa referees. We experienced the same thing last year when we had Fifa referees and made complaints but no action was taken against those involved,” he said.
KPL Chief Executive Jack Oguda admitted that they have received several complaints about poor officiating but insisted that their hands are tied.
“We are addressing the issue and we would like to have the Fifa-accredited referees back but it depends on FKF. If they are willing we are ready to do the appointments jointly. Until then, we will have to do with what we have,” he said.
Gilbert Ottieno, the man responsible for the appointment declined to comment and instead accused FeverPitch writer of being biased and loving controversy.
“I have no comment if you are the one writing the story because you love controversy,” he said when contacted.