Achuthan ignites debate on who should be sports minister
Former Big Bullets and Hockey Association of Malawi (HAM) general secretary Krishna Achuthan has ignited debate by suggesting that the country needs a sports policy shift through appointing of sports ministers with sports background.
However, Nation on Sunday has established that while some countries that excel in sports have sports ministers with sports background, there is no link between sports glory and background of a particular minister.
“Sport in general needs an overhaul and people need to undergo a change of mindset. For such a radical change to take place, we need a minister of Sports who was involved in sports admininstration and understands what sport Malawi needs,” Achuthan said in reaction to a recent Sunday Shot column which lamented misplaced sports priorities.
Achuthan, who is calling for a revolution of sports to turn it into viable business investment, is a trained sports administrator with over 20 years experience, including being Sports Council board member.
“We have some of our priorities wrong and management is by crises,” said Achuthan.
Current Sports Minister Grace Chiumia had, before her appointment by President Peter Mutharika, no sports background just like her predecessor Enoch Chihana.
Before Chihana, Symon Vuwa Kaunda, who had succeeded Luscious Kanyumba, was also parachuted from the political realm into the Sports Ministry.
Former BBC and MBC sports stringer Moses Dossi, who served as Cabinet minister in the Muluzi administration, was the last sports minister with sports background. The long list of ministers who had no sports background includes Henderson Mabeti, Henry Chimunthu Banda, Jaffalie Mussa, the late Du Chisiza and Kamangadazi Chambalo.
But Dossi does not agree that sports background should be a prerequisite for sports ministers, adding: “It is about a person’s background, what they have achieved, hardwork and passion. I was a BBC sports correspondent and a salesman by profession. There has never been any other best sports minister.”
Sports analyst Charles Nyirenda attributed Malawi sports failure to what he termed as ‘the roundabout syndrome’ evident by failure to implement resolutions meant to uplift sports in the country.
Said Nyirenda: “You can have someone with sports background, but if there is no support from the top, all will be useless. The big question is: Do we take sports as an investment or a consumption good?”
FAM president Walter Nyamilandu, whose association receives the biggest chunk of annual sports grants of around K70 million, said what matters is not sports background, but the ministry having capable technicians to drive policy.
Random examples on the globe of sports ministers with sports background are Afcon winner Taher Abouzeid of Egypt who has been a minister since 2004. He is a former Ahly player. The Pharaohs are record six-time Afcon winners — one under Abouzeid. Egypt is also a world handball champion.
In Asia, Bangladesh sports minister Biren Shikder has no sports background whereas his deputy Arif Khan was the captain of Bangladesh national football team. Bangladesh is a top ranked cricket nation.
South Africa’s Fikile Mbalula has no sports background, just like Ghana’s sports minister Mahama Ayariga and Cameroon’s Adoum Garoua. Ghana are Afcon winners and current finalists whereas Cameroon are football giants in their own right. Lesotho sports minister Chief Thesele Maseribane was a swimmer and the president of Lesotho Swimming Association. n
