National Super League club Migori Youth has offered a rebuttal to Football Kenya Federation’s reports regarding harassment of visiting teams, officials and media personnel at Migori Stadium this month calling them “baseless, untrue and are maliciously aimed at painting the club in a bad way.”FKF, through CEO Barry Otieno on 19 April issued an official notice to the club having received significant treatment and safety concerns, prompting its Leagues and Competition Committee to establish a raft of conditions for the continued use of Migori Stadium as a host venue for any remaining FKF National Super League matches.FKF goes hard on Migori Youth, imposes tough measures to curb visiting teams’ harassmentAmong the incidents mentioned was in their then recent match against Luanda Villa SC on Sunday 14 April, when it is mentioned that there was denial of access to the pitch for visiting teams immediately upon arrival, while there were instances of maltreatment, harassment, constant insults and provocation of visiting team benches and club media personnel.On the findings, Migori Youth, through Club Chairman Abdi Aziz Osman responded in a brief letter to FKF saying: “We wish to categorically state that the reports are untrue and are maliciously aimed at painting our club in a bad way. “We have always provided adequate security and accorded all the teams that have visited our home venue fair treatment, including access to the different areas in the stadium, and there has never been any incidents reported before, during or after the match.”FKF succumbs to pressure, imposes new measures on ‘unsportsmanlike’ Muhoroni YouthThe club, which is also grappling another case against it for improper conduct against Darajani Gogo FC’s media team last year, stated that clear protocol wasn’t used in the recent FKF Committee ruling saying: “Your office ought to have communicated the same to us and should have given us an opportunity to respond before the League committee chairman’s arbitrary decision was communicated to us.”On the question of delayed payments to Darajani Gogo for damaged property (iPhone 14 and media equipment) and reimbursement of medical expenses for the assaulted official, Migori, who were given a new deadline of seven days to clear, said: “We are still committed to pay the fines imposed. “However, with the league lacking sponsorship and as a club that largely depends on well-wishers for financing, we, as many other clubs participating in the FKF Leagues, are grappling with financial challenges and do struggle to raise funds to enable us honor matches. As such, we might not be able to pay up the fines within the timeline stipulated in your letter but remain committed to paying up as soon as the club’s financial situation improves.”##NAJAVA_MECA_8063473##The NSL club also took a shot at FKF urging it “not to use your office to target clubs or individuals with whom you have political differences.”“Migori Youth FC is a community club that carries the dreams and aspirations of many young talents from South Nyanza and it will be senseless to come up with false allegations and sanction the club due to your differences with an individual in the club,” the statement concluded.
