Details emerge in Brave Warriors kit drama
An official send-off to award the national colours to the Brave Warriors could have prevented the casual attire controversy currently facing the team, Namibia Sports Commission (NSC) chief administrator Freddy Mwiya has said.
This comes after the Namibia Football Association (NFA) withdrew the 'controversial' casual shirts yesterday, which sparked outrage due to their alleged similarity in colours to those of the Swapo Party.
The withdrawal means Namibia will not wear the shirts at the Africa Cup of Nations showpiece, which commences this coming weekend.
“We normally have a national colour awarding [event] and an official send-off for any team participating in international competitions.
“They did, however, not send anything to us to sign off on or approve before they left for the competition.
“All I can say is that we did the damage control and ordered the withdrawal, and that a probe must be done within the organisation as to how this was allowed to happen,” Mwiya said.
NFA decision
The NFA interim secretary general, Jochen Traut, sought to explain why the team did not receive an official send-off, a standard procedure that usually takes place when national teams depart to compete in major tournaments.
It is understood that the NSC personnel were allegedly on leave by the time the team left for Ghana in preparation for the Afcon competition.
“The team was going into training camp and it was during a time when most of the people were on leave,” Traut said.
Traut said the shirt design was decided on by the NFA last year, adding that there was no political influence on the choice of colours for the shirts.
“This was our decision to have those colours on, and no one influenced the NFA. Yes, we have received sponsorship from NBL, MTC, Debmarine, PSTBet and the government. It is with some of the funding that we acquired the shirts and had them designed in that way,” Traut said.
Public voice concern
Members of the public and senior political figures expressed dismay on social media over the attire.
Social media critics claimed that the shirts were intentionally designed to enhance the 'chances' of the Swapo Party in the national polls scheduled for later this year.
Questions unanswered
It still remains unclear when the design was finalised and under which leadership of the NFA it was designed and procured.
NFA sources claim the attire was bought on the instructions of the former normalisation committee leadership, which paved the way for the current leadership.
The chairperson of the committee, Bisey Uirab, when contacted, said, “I have no comment on the matter.”
The tournament kicks off on 13 January, with the Brave Warriors facing off for their opening fixture against Tunisia on 16 January in Korhogo, followed by South Africa four days later and Mali on 24 January.
This comes after the Namibia Football Association (NFA) withdrew the 'controversial' casual shirts yesterday, which sparked outrage due to their alleged similarity in colours to those of the Swapo Party.
The withdrawal means Namibia will not wear the shirts at the Africa Cup of Nations showpiece, which commences this coming weekend.
“We normally have a national colour awarding [event] and an official send-off for any team participating in international competitions.
“They did, however, not send anything to us to sign off on or approve before they left for the competition.
“All I can say is that we did the damage control and ordered the withdrawal, and that a probe must be done within the organisation as to how this was allowed to happen,” Mwiya said.
NFA decision
The NFA interim secretary general, Jochen Traut, sought to explain why the team did not receive an official send-off, a standard procedure that usually takes place when national teams depart to compete in major tournaments.
It is understood that the NSC personnel were allegedly on leave by the time the team left for Ghana in preparation for the Afcon competition.
“The team was going into training camp and it was during a time when most of the people were on leave,” Traut said.
Traut said the shirt design was decided on by the NFA last year, adding that there was no political influence on the choice of colours for the shirts.
“This was our decision to have those colours on, and no one influenced the NFA. Yes, we have received sponsorship from NBL, MTC, Debmarine, PSTBet and the government. It is with some of the funding that we acquired the shirts and had them designed in that way,” Traut said.
Public voice concern
Members of the public and senior political figures expressed dismay on social media over the attire.
Social media critics claimed that the shirts were intentionally designed to enhance the 'chances' of the Swapo Party in the national polls scheduled for later this year.
Questions unanswered
It still remains unclear when the design was finalised and under which leadership of the NFA it was designed and procured.
NFA sources claim the attire was bought on the instructions of the former normalisation committee leadership, which paved the way for the current leadership.
The chairperson of the committee, Bisey Uirab, when contacted, said, “I have no comment on the matter.”
The tournament kicks off on 13 January, with the Brave Warriors facing off for their opening fixture against Tunisia on 16 January in Korhogo, followed by South Africa four days later and Mali on 24 January.
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