The success of Zambia in the Africa Cup of Nations needs to be consolidated and be used as a foundation to strengthen the bargaining power of Cosafa region in African football. The Cosafa leadership needs to call an urgent meeting, in Lusaka, to deliberate on the meaning of Zambia’s victory for the region, and for the organization.
Judging by the chaos that transpired in the last gathering of Cosafa in Botswana in December 2011, when the presidential election was the major issue, the organization acted clumsily and disgracefully in addressing the matter at hand. It was disgraceful that interests of outsiders were entertained by the executives who were only concerned about preserving their positions.
I am one of those who feel Suketu Patel does not have the clout to duel with the big boys in Africa’s soccer politics. However let the fact that Patel has retained his presidency be water under the bridge, and work must start now to strengthen his presidency and the organization. Both sides – for and against him – in the last elections must bury the hatchet and formulate a clear strategy to firstly fast-track the development of football in the region, and secondly to forge a spirit of solidarity in the efforts of all members.
The example for the latter was provided in the 2012 Afcon, where debutants Botswana felt alone in an intimidating environment. I did not get the sense that Cosafa members, individually or collectively behind the banner of the organization, made any attempt to offer Botswana – the two other qualified members Angola and Botswana – any support. Botswana, more than the more experienced and better resourced Angola and Zambia, deserved more attention.
The attitude to Botswana by other Cosafa members should have been in these terms: “how can we help you?” The campaign of Botswana, as well as Angola and Zambia, in 2012 Afcon was for the region as a whole, whose soccer bosses were all there in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea even though their countries did not qualify.
I don’t begrudge the executives for being at the Afcon, it goes with their jobs. What I resent is them being there to focus on VIP treatment, other than pulling strings for the betterment of the region. They can start this work in the special meeting I am hoping would be called later this month or sometime in March. This deal must be concluded while it’s still hot. Zambia’s success should not be a once-off as far as the fortunes of the region are concerned. Cosafa as an organisation should be stronger than before, and briskly build muscle to grow this strength.
One of the crucial building blocks available for Cosafa is the Cecafa region. There is quite a lot that is common between the two regions than what separates them. Cosafa should therefore make forging a strong alliance with Cecafa an agenda issue for its special meeting. The geographical and cultural ties between the two are naturally strong, therefore a proposal for an alliance will be like a natural progression.
Cecafa needs a strong Cosafa in the power stakes in African football, especially with east Africa’s quest to host the Afcon for the first time ever. Poorer west African nations Burkina Faso and Mali hosted in 1998 and 2000, thanks to the assistance they received from CAF. But a better resourced Kenya, Uganda or Tanzania cannot even be afforded the privilege of co-hosting. Some say the east Africans’ sin is that they do not have oil to succeed the last three hosts – Angola, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea – as well as the next two hosts after SA in 2013, Morocco (2015) and Libya (2017).
Such conspiracy theories cannot be dismissed summarily; politics that saw west and north Africa enjoying direct support from CAF is real. The two regions enjoy that status because of the bargaining power they enjoy, and the ruthlessness with which they pursue their interests.
Cosafa must catch a wake up and open all channels that are necessary to make this region a super candidate in power politics of CAF. One of our own, Molefi Oliphant, is a vice-president there but that privilege is of no benefit to the region as Oliphant is not acting on Cosafa’s cue. He is not even representing policy ambitions of the current executive of the SA Football Association (Safa).
The fomer Safa president is there as part of CAF president Issa Hayatou’s inner circle, something which spells doom for the region knowing Hayatou’s attitude towards the south. Cecafa in east Africa can say they feel the same way too about Hayatou, which makes sense why the two regions need to urgently collaborate on matters of mutual interest.
The time to act is now – Zambia’s success must be used as the rallying cry to permanently lift the Cosafa region out of the abyss. And lastly, but very significant, let Kalusha Bwalya be afforded an increased influence within the organisation. We cannot go very far when we have all the football brains we need right here.
· Cosafa = Council of Southern Africa Football Associations, head office Gaborone, Botswana
· Cecaca = Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations, head office Nairobi, Kenya
· CAF = Confederation of African Football, head office October 6 City, Egypt
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