Baba na mpira: Raila Odinga, please just buy Gor Mahia

Raila Odinga joins Gor Mahia players to celebrate after winning the league in 2018 [Courtesy]

The grapevine went abuzz when word spread that Raila’s daughter Winnie was to be incorporated into the Gor Mahia executive ranks.

This happened barely three months after it had been rumoured that ‘Baba’ had played a big role in ensuring Dennis Oliech joined the club’s playing unit and, to cap it all, was to pick up the tab for his salary. That Baba was ready to bankroll the payroll to ensure what Oliech wanted was fulfilled before he put pen on paper.

Next followed Winnie’s presence in several K’Ogalo matches at the Kasarani Stadium. Baba’s visit to Goodison Park in England to watch Gor play Everton in the SportPesa sponsored trip was the icing on the cake. All of a sudden, Winnie became the face of the Odingas in the K’Ogalo pages.

It is instructive that Raila’s father, Oginga Odinga, was among the Luo elders who established the club in 1968. It is said Raila was fringe player for Luo Union FC in the 1960s. Although Raila was still studying in Europe in 1968 when K’Ogalo was formed, he has continued to support the club in cash and kind. His son, the late Fidel Odinga, was a direct benefactor of Gor Mahia and during the tough years between 2008-2012, he was a constant contributor towards salvaging the club when cash strapped. Many diehard fans talk about ‘Obange’ as he was fondly called with nostalgia.

If it is true that the meeting called by the Club on April 9 is a step towards finally converting the club to a business entity, so be it. It is actually long overdue being 51 years after its establishment. What I know is that Gor Mahia FC has come of age and it can compete with the giants of Africa. It can take big clubs like Zamalek FC, Simba FC, Orlando Pirates, TP Mazembe toe to toe and either beat them or scare the hell out of them. What would happen if the outfit changes from semi-professional to fully professional?

Among famous or once famous clubs owned by politicians is Abiola Babes owned by Chief Moshood Abiola, the one-time Nigerian presidential candidate. The club was a regular feature in continental tournaments.

In South Africa, Jomo Sono though not a fulltime politician, is a personal friend to Raila and also owns Jomo Cosmos. Uganda’s former president and his party Uganda People’s Congress was associated with Express FC of Kampala. Moise Katoumba of DRC who challenged Joseph Kabila for the presidency is the owner of TP Mazembe, one of Africa’s most successful clubs.

In Kigali, APR FC is associated with President Kagame who is also the country’s Commander in Chief. In Tanzania, Yanga was founded in the ‘30s as a sporting wing for the emerging young black youth who were beginning to assert themselves against the colonialists or wealthy Arabs. Hence Young Africans. Simba is associated with the privileged Tanzanians.

Silvio Berlusconi is said to have arrived at AC Milan with an impeccable sense of business, deep pockets and great charisma. He built one of Europe’s great clubs out of a struggling club and the rest is history. Do we see a Berlusconi in Raila and Gor Mahia? My answer is yes.

In Kenya, many wadosi have been associated with football clubs but do they have the passion, finesse and bottomless pockets to run the clubs? Are they committed enough to run a football club? Does Raila fit the bill of elevating Gor Mahia to a higher pedestal from where it is?

As we cross our fingers and wait for the truth to come out, these are the hurdles ‘Baba’ has to surmount before he succeeds at Gor Mahia FC. He has to convince its legion of fans that the Club has changed its status from a welfare association. They shall no longer sack officials or the technical bench through mob justice or kangaroo courts. That it doesn’t matter how loud they shout or how riotous they are. All grievances shall be guided by the articles and memorandums of the Club, err, sorry, ‘company’.

Secondly, they shall be expected to buy shares through a stockbroker and become ‘shareholders’ not ‘members’. Thirdly, their interests as shareholders shall be protected by the registrar of companies and the Capital Markets Authority. That their issues shall be handled by a board of directors who will be determined by shareholders and not hecklers. The rule of law shall take over the Club.

On behalf of the shareholders, the board will be the custodians of all the company’s properties and interests.

Players shall be employees of the Club (read company) and shall work under a team of management executives appointed by the board. This should be headed by a CEO who will be vetted by the board. This is where Winnie Odinga may just come in. Probably as a majority shareholder, the family might have the muscles to influence things their way.

Lastly, this maybe the beginning of new things for Gor Mahia FC and may just be what the doctor ordered as the Club enters its next half a century.

May the dream come true!

By the way, did ‘Baba’ beat somebody to the tape?