Prime
Own goals in Fufa’s growing appetite for bans, fines
FUFA President Moses Magogo. Photo | File
What you need to know:
- Wakiso Giants defender George Kaddu is serving a two-month ban and required to pay Shs1m for “bringing the game into disrepute after confronting a referee.”
Express head coach Wasswa Bbosa was suspended for three games after his league opening day loss to Arua Hill over post-match media comments.
Wakiso Giants defender George Kaddu is serving a two-month ban and required to pay Shs1m for “bringing the game into disrepute after confronting a referee.”
The referees, too, have not missed the party that has rocked the Uganda Premier League that is just 11 match days old. Referee Lucky Kasilirwe will wait until after Christmas to blow his whistle again after being found guilty of wrongly cancelling Soltilo Bright Stars’ goal at Gaddafi. He joins Richard Kirangwa and Rajab Bakasambe in the list of shame.
Increased vigilance
The sanctions have been competing with goals for attention but while goals excite, the former are often ridiculous.
“I’m concerned about the bans and fines, they affect the league and its image in one way or the other,” UPL chief executive Bernard Bainamani told Score.
“It has two implications; one, is that the level of non-compliance with the rules and regulations is high or second, there could’ve been non-compliance previously but we were not vigilant enough.”
Wakiso Giants chief executive Sula Kamoga feels some of the fines are unnecessary.
“They are becoming too many in a short period making it look unpleasant and also, some fines are unnecessary and can be reduced to warnings,” Kamoga says.
Kamoga, whose club has seen his players Kaddu and Edward Saturo and photographer Phil Mugabi affected, also feels the sanctions should be equal and fair for the same kind of offences across board.
Kaddu was banned for two months and fined Shs1m for violent conduct against referee Hakim Mulindwa in their 5-0 loss to Vipers. Yet a month later, Rashid Okocha was banned for 18 days and fined Shs500,000 for a similar offence.
The Competitions Disciplinary Panel cited a breach of Article 31 of the Fufa Competitions rule in both cases but issued different sanctions.
The rules stipulate that a player can be banned up to 10 matches in such cases.
Suspended fines
The Fufa Competitions Disciplinary Panel (CDP) also banned KCCA’s Ashraf Mugume, Sadat Anaku, Innocent Wafula and Musa Ramathan for remonstrating with assistant referee Dick Okello in their game against Vipers a fortnight ago.
The four were also handed a Shs500,000 suspended fine each, leaving the approach used to issue the bans and fines in the balance, and unclear.
Fufa disciplinary panel chairman Deo Mutabazi declined to clarify on the inconsistency. However, the Fufa Competitions Rules leave the determination of bans and fines at the discretion of the body exercising judicial powers. The fines are paid to Fufa.
Source of evidence
Osborne Mushabe, a Mbarara City fan, supports the disciplinary measures but is concerned about how the judicial bodies collect the evidence. All the cases handled so far have arisen from video or photographic evidence on social media and mainstream media platforms.
“Not all games are broadcast live so it’s difficult to get equity. Some will be punished, others will just walk away scot-free,” Mushabe said.
Kamoga raises a similar issue: “What are the official videos considered as evidence?” he asks, perhaps with his mind on the video that pinned Saturo that many found inconclusive.
The rules provide that the judicial bodies “will act on reports received from match officials indicating the incidents, if any, reports or information from a coach, player, spectator, officials or their member who witnessed the incident, media or from any stakeholder.”
“The standard of proof shall be to the total satisfaction of the panel with or without a response to the charge.”
Judicial bodies
Previously, the UPL secretariat had powers to slap sanctions but that was withdrawn two years ago as all judicial matters relating to football were centralised to the respective Fufa judicial bodies.
The Fufa deputy CEO in charge of football Decolas Kiiza said the decision to centralise was to expedite the processes.
The bodies mandated to exercise disciplinary power at Fufa are the referees, CDP, the comittees of disciplinary, ethics and integrity, and appeals.
What fans say
Desmond Lobi, SC Villa. The bans and fines are for the good of the game but should be imposed on fair ground after a fair hearing. Of late, they have become rampant and some of them look harsh and not in good faith.
Allen Nabagereka, Express. The bans and fines are welcome. There’s a lot of indiscipline on and off the pitch. Some players want to manhandle refs... like the incident at Kitende, the Wakiso player behaved badly and deserved a lengthy ban.
Osborne Mushabe, Mbarara City. We had Jasper Aheebwa suspended for three games and fined Shs500,000 for a foul in a game against Tooro United on Matchday 2. Ironically, the match officials had not seen it as a foul worth of caution.
Sanctioned persons
George Kaddu Wakiso ban & fine
Sadat Anaku KCCA ban & fine
Ashraf Mugume KCCA ban & fine
Musa Ramathan KCCA ban & fine
Innocent Wafula KCCA ban & fine
Wasswa Bbosa Express ban & fine
Rashid Okocha Ondu ban & fine
Jasper Aheebwa Mbarara ban & fine
Lucky Kasilirwe Referee ban
Richard Kirangwa Referee ban
Rajab Bakasambe Referee ban
Edward Saturo Wakiso ban
Phil Mugabi Wakiso ban
