Sport remains the greatest unifier

The unity we so much yearn for should be prevailing not only in politics, but in all facets of society. Namibia is definitely not a perfect country but it is also not all doom and gloom in our motherland. However, we still have deep economic and social divide challenges to overcome. In the midst of our problems, we have a moral obligation to reject and dismiss all enablers of division, exclusion and discrimination. Sport has proven to be the greatest unifier hence its inherent connection to national pride. Not even politics can unite Namibians, but sport brings people of different colour, race, tribe or creed together. It has the potential to transcend deep divides in fragmented societies. This was exactly the atmosphere at the Sam Nujoma Stadium during the Dr Hage Geingob Cup which featured the senior national men's soccer team and their Zimbabwean counterparts. Unity is priceless. About 15 000 fans turned up to support their favourite teams but most importantly, to present a united front. Sport contributes immensely to social solidarity and can definitely provide a lifeline to gifted and talented athletes from impoverished backgrounds. The sad part though is that despite numerous justifications to increase government's sport funding, there appears to be no political will to invest in developing the sector. This has heavily impacted the running of programmes which has seen many of our sportsmen and women pulling out of international events simply because they can't afford N$15 000 to travel abroad. It is disheartening when politicians can't get their priorities right. Until when will our government continue to treat sport as a neglected stepchild? When our athletes represent us abroad there is a massive weight of expectation for them to win medals and titles, yet we don't see generous budget allocations to help prepare these athletes against the world's best. There must be a broader development and funding plan starting at school level where the connection to sporting federations and talent searches must be unearthed.