Broke Posta players send cash appeal to Amina
Posta Rangers have sent an appeal to the Ministry of Sports seeking to be included in the teams to receive the government stimulus package aimed at cushioning athletes.
The government rolled out a programme aimed at helping athletes survive through the period of coronavirus that has seen sporting activities suspended and their earnings diminish with sportsmen and women from various federations receiving Sh10,000 each for the next three months.
However, only 12 of the 18 Kenyan Premier League teams will receive the stipend with the other six deemed either parastatals or self-sustaining.
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Posta are one of the six clubs that missed out with the government saying their employer Postal Corporation of Kenya should have enough to cater for their players.
But Posta chairman John Tonui has written to Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed, appealing to the ministry to include his team into the programme since they have not been paid for the last four months.
“We wish to inform you that Posta Rangers players and officials also struggle financially and they are not stable as it was deemed.
The players and officials owe rent arrears for at least 2-3 months,” read part of Tonui’s letter to Amina dated June 11.
“In addition to facing imminent eviction, as their June rent is due, they and their families now face an increasingly desperate housing, food and health crisis.
We look forward to your positive consideration and appreciate your continued support to the growth and development of sports in Kenya,” the letter added.
While not committing to include the Posta squad, Sports Principal Secretary Sports Joe Okudo said: “I will undertake to talk to my colleague at the ICT Ministry PS Jerome Ochieng but ideally, Posta as a State Corporation, should be having a budget for its employees. The stimulus is for the struggling non-funded clubs including women teams.”
