Sports Club Villa as an institution has administrative structures that address the kind of utterances made by Mr. Misagga that came to light after the Executive held a meeting with the fans’ representative. At the meeting the Coordinator was requested to avail accountability for his recent fundraising activities on behalf of the Club.

It was however surprising to read and hear from the media that the fans’ leader intended to resign and this, not before directing attacks at Villa’s former Treasurer, Mr. Omar Ahmed and the Executive for allegedly never furnishing their accountability. Villa will not just stand to watch as people who have zealously and selflessly served the Club with diligence over the years are unduly and unfairly slandered especially as regards to their role in the Club affairs.

We wish to emphatically mention that Mr. Omar Ahmed was always accountable to the Executive and history judges him as one of the Club’s biggest proponents of the principle of proper financial management. Throughout his tenure he was exemplary and always furnished accountability at the Executive meetings and at the Club Annual General Assemblies. At the time of his resignation end of March 2004, he paid all outstanding players’ allowances, ensured that players’ rent was paid up to June that year and cleared the outstanding bank overdraft. The Secretariat has a record of the minutes including those of the General Assembly held at Namboole Stadium in 2004.

The image recently painted in the press shows Mr. Omar Ahmed, an SC Villa member, as keen on knowing about the accountability from the fans’ leadership whereas he had failed to do the same during his term in office. This impression is grossly skewed, outrightly erroneous and only aimed at maligning his personality and character. It is during his stay in office that the Club enjoyed good success on the field and good financial management.

Remarks carried in the Sunday Vision of February 19, 2006 by Mr. Kabuleeta were a poorly disguised attempt at hitting at Villa’s leadership, a desire he has so passionately cherished in the past. Kabuleeta has in fact tirelessly worked to discredit every achievement of the Club and will not hesitate to jump at the slightest opportunity or misfortune to promote his malicious and ill-natured intentions against the symbols of Villa’s success. Villa works as a team and will forever maintain that approach. He tries to depict Mr. Omar Ahmed as having left his executive position expecting the Club to beg him to stay.

Absolute nonsense! Outrageous and misconceived! The work of a twisted imagination!

This only exposes his degree of ignorance as a journalist or more correctly as a columnist. Mr. Kabuleeta could at best seek the correct information before putting pen to paper lest his effort at weaving his patchwork of occurrences into a tapestry of lies to the unsuspecting public is challenged in appropriate fora to his detriment and chagrin. We are reminiscent of the “accountabilities” of his USPA blank cheque.

Villa fans need to know that the Executive has the responsibility to oversee the activities of the Club and whereas the Executive welcomes ideas seeking to improve the running of the Club and the betterment of its revenue base, demanding for accountability from the fans’ leadership for funds raised in the name of the Club is the Executive’s duty. The fans need to be reminded that the day to day running of the Club is vested in the Executive and that the fans’ body is subordinate to the Executive. Much as freedom of expression is encouraged, fans should know that they are not in “competition” with their Executive and that their body is not a “shadow Executive”. Rather their activities should be complementary. No right thinking Executive can ever shun a well intentioned helping hand. Order and transparency are nevertheless paramount.

The Villa fraternity is reminded that football is about teamwork and that claims to attribute the Club’s winning of the Kagame Cup prize money to player Bernard Mwalala as an individual are shallow. Without seeking to demean the contribution of the player, it will be recalled that the same player had enjoyed an unequally fruitful stint at the Club before eloping in pursuit of lucrative contracts elsewhere. The success Villa attained at the Kagame Cup was team contribution and the credit goes where it is due.

The Club wishes to state that its demand for accountability is neither opportunistic nor about threatening popularity. It is an internal matter that Mr. Misagga opted to publicise. Sports Club Villa disassociates itself from the ensuing allusions to politicising the issue by seeking to drag government into the fray.

On presenting the accountability to the Executive, the Club will accordingly carefully study and consider the submission. We wish to caution our fans to be on guard against the Club’s detractors who always seek to exploit any opportunity to destroy Villa’s achievements. We shall however soldier on undeterred.

Edward Mugalu Luyimbazi
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY SC VILLA