Top 10 sports controversies of the year

2019 was a subject of ups and downs as far as sports is concerned and the industry was surrounded by a number of controversies.

Below are the top ten controversies of the year.

10. Eritrean footballers disappears in Uganda again

Like the 2012 Cecafa edition that was held in Uganda where 14 Eritrean players disappeared, In 2019, five members of the same squad also took a French leave from their hotel in Jinja, the Cecafa spokesperson Rogers Mulindwa confirmed the incident and said they had tightened security for the remaining players to ensure that no one else disappears again.

9. Fufa Referee In Match fixing scandal

Emmanuel Kiwewa a referee was alleged to have asked for a bribe over a University football semi final return leg match between Uganda Martyrs University and St Lawrence University of 18th October in Nkozi.

Kiwewa a controversial referee who had disallowed Ronald Sempila’s header that would have given Bright Stars a lead against KCCA the hosts in a Star Times Uganda premier League match saying was wide hence a one all draw, was recorded and the audio circulated as he was soliciting for a one million bribe to manipulate the results of the semi finals.

The audio attracted attention of Fufa Referees Standing Committee that suspended him pending further investigations.

8. Uganda netball federation sacks coaching staff

UNF Sacked head coach Vicent Kiwanuka and his assistant Nelson Bogere just after an impressive world cup performance in Liverpool where Uganda finished 7th overall, the best ever position for the She Cranes in this tournament in all the three appearances.

To our surprise, Kiwanuka was replaced with Rashid Mubiru a coach who had been controversially sacked in 2018 months before the 2019 world cup though he had won the World University Netball Championship and was at the 2015 World Cup.

Rashid Mubiru and his assistant Robert Kisitu were reappointed just a month to the Africa Netball Championship and were tasked to bring the trophy home.

7. Obua ends Bakkabulindi’s Minister-ship

On the 14th December 2019,Yoweri Kaguta Museni the president of the republic of Uganda announced a reshuffle in the cabinet. Among the announcements, was the replacement of the state minister for sports Charles Bakkabulindi being replaced by Ajuri county Member of Parliament Denis Hamson Obua.

Bakkabulindi had served for 15 consecutive years surviving a number of reshuffles but the 14th December 2019 reshuffle left him out of sports affairs.

Bakkabulindi’s replacement Obua raised questions in the sports family whether he shall objectively handle the big fish of the industry after appearing among the MPs that were present at Skyz Hotel in Naguru in a ceremony to welcome FUFA President Moses Magogo as he returned to office from a two months suspension by FIFA for abuse of office just days before his appointment.

6. The Kapeeka Mosac Rally confusion

This was the final event on the 2019 NRC calendar and the decider of the 2019 NRC champion with Arthur Blick jr and Yassin Nasser the only two in contention. Nasser wanted podium finish to clinch the tittle while Blick needed to win and pray that Nasser does make it to the podium.

The rally was a subject of many controversies hence drivers protesting against the results who included Hajj Omar Mayanja claiming he was over held by Christakis Fitidis which increased his time loss while Arthur Blick jr whose Mitsubishi Evox was re-scrutinized by the technical delegate Joshua Mayanja in the middle of the rally claiming that the car had spacers in wheel, verbally said that the incident destabilized his rally team and hence lack of concentration and loosing out on his dream of winning the second NRC.

It took two days to confirm the event results and when they were confirmed Yassin Nasser maintained his first had won the event hence his maiden NRC the announcement that forced Omar Mayanja who was announced to have finished second in the rally to a peal against the FMU decision.

5. Ugandan female Athlete breaks a seven years secret
Annet Negesa was coerced into a harmful surgery in November 2012 after IAAF told her that she had produced more testosterone during that year’s London Olympics which could not allow her to compete as a woman.
She was advised to have a surgery and have her internal testes cut out to reduce testosterone which surgery poorly reacted hence defects in the back,knees,feet, muscles and ankles hence life long Oestrogen therapy.

Negesa was found staying in a restaurant in Berlin showing fears of returning home because she could not have enough care since she was a bread winner.
For the seven years she had kept silent over the condition hopping for improvement which had not materialized.

She could not compete any more because of the defects and was planning to petition IAAF for the advise that ruined her career.

4. Sex and lesbianism in the Crested Cranes Camp
The Crested Cranes were flagged off for the Cecafa Senior Women Challenge Cup that was held in Tanzania.

The head coach Faridah Bulega began by not feeling okay with the inclusion of the u17 head coach Ayub Khalifa Kiyinji who had just won the u17 Cosafa cup and alleged to have bewitched her during the training camp in Njeru.

The coaching staff promised to come back with the trophy but when the squad arrived in Tanzania, the ambitions changed.
One of the male coaches turned to seducing national team players into sex the incident that forced some players to desert the team until the situation stabilizes.

Some players were alleged to have turned their guns to fellow female players and hence Uganda finishing third overall.

3. Netball word cup outburst

This was among the top Ugandan sports shameful controversies.

Uganda finished 7th overall the most ever Uganda’s performance at the world cup. On return, the Netball federation denied players post world cup interviews in a later dated 26th July 2019 calling that decision as maintaining transparency.
The information that leaked from the transparent netball federation was totally opposite.

The federation president Suzan Anek had included most of her relatives on the technical team with no one of them having related equalization. Among those was Doctor Ataro Ayera her son and a medical doctor with no physio experience who came days to the trip to replace Steven Norman who was with the team since February.

Players said Ataro could not provide any solution to their injuries and this man was also introduced days to the 2015 world cup.

Anek had hired a cousin for a Chef, Son for office work and Visa processor and another relative as a team tactician. She had also traveled with 16 officials escorting 14 players and she was claiming to have incurred one billion debt on allowances but NCS said there was no debt since all the money was from the government.

The players broke the news that they had poor meals and had not yet received their 2015 world cup allowances though they knew that it was already released by the government even before this year’s world cup.

2. The Uganda Cranes Strike

The Uganda national football team went on strike in Cairo during the Africa cup of nation tournament.

The team had qualified for the knock out stages of the tournament for the first time since 1978. They had to go on strike because FUFA had failed to give them their bonuses for qualifying to the next stage.

The cranes players were also demanding for the 10,000$ arrears for qualifying for the tournament.
FUFA reminded the players the code of conduct that they signed ahead of the tournament but players turned a deaf ear not until the government intervened.

Up to now, some players that were alleged to have been directly involved in the scuffle are yet to return to the Cranes team.

1. Magogo abuse of office

The biggest controversy of the year is when the football world governing body FIFA suspended the historical FUFA president Moses Hassim Magogo for two months after illegal sale of 2014 world cup.

The FIFA Ethics Committee revealed as investigations in acts were opened in July 2018 and the independent Ethics Committee Chairman said a plea bargain was entered into by Magogo hence the decision.

After two months, Magogo received a triumph welcome to the FUFA house.