Minister Tampane to launch Sports Policy
As her office is broken into and robbed, again
TEBOHO JAFETA
MASERU – The Minister of Gender, Youth, Sport and Recreation, Likeleli Tampane, announced in the National Assembly that her ministry is on the verge of completing a national sports policy – the first such initiative in the country’s sports history. Tampane has proposed a budget totaling M67 742 109 million for her ministry.
“The ministry will use this money to facilitate the completion of the Sports Policy which for many years failed to be enacted. We will also support the newly introduced National University of Lesotho (NUL) sports programme physical education to be offered in the coming academic year,” she noted.
Tampane said the NUL programme is envisaged to benefit many regardless of their educational background, and added that this will go a long way towards sports development in the country.
She further added that her ministry will also introduce Anti-doping educational campaigns to ensure that players remain drugs-free. She also mentioned that she will work hard to privatize Rapokolana High Altitude Training Centre as well as Leshoboro Seeiso and the Setsoto stadiums’ facilities.
“We are to host African Union sport Council AUSC Region 5 games in December, but our main challenge is lack of finances. We seek the money to ensure that these games are held smoothly,” she said.
The AUSC Region 5 Games have been allocated M280 million, which is meant to renovate sports facilities ahead of the games. The approved budget will be used for upgrading the already existing facilities since no construction of new facilities is on the cards.
The games will take place with Maseru, being the host city, while the National University of Lesotho campus in Roma will be the home village for athletes.
“We expected to collect M563 700 during the past financial year but only managed to gather M4 000. Our streams of income are ‘Matheko Vocational Training Centre which closed operations for a year with no students attending. The ministry also receives income from Setsoto Stadium which never hosted sports,” Tampane pointed out.
She further mentioned that the ministry spent the money granted for the past financial year on supporting Likuena in Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers matches against Benin, Nigeria and Sierra Leone as well as sponsoring Bantu FC in Confederation of African Football (CAF) Champions League competition.
Legislator Nyapane Kaya, is supporting that the ministry be awarded requested, pleaded that sports activities should be improved from the current state.
“We do not have money to sponsor sports, they are being sponsored by private companies. Big companies which operate in both Lesotho and South Africa sponsor sports in South Africa but here they do not.” He added that there should be a binding law that will force companies to sponsor sport.
“If these companies have a certain investment in Lesotho, a certain percentage should go to sports,” he commented. On his part Lesego Makgothi, All Basotho Convention parliamentarian, expressed gratitude that the Rapokolana Centre and other facilities will now be under private management and added that this means they will be readily available for use all the times.
Meanwhile, Tampane’s office has been broken into and robbed by unknown assailants. The ministry’s Chief Information Officer, Maqalika Matsepe, confirmed the incident and added that the crime happened during the Easter holidays. Staff discovered the occurrence upon arrival at the offices.
“No equipment has been stolen or damaged except three doors which the criminals used to enter into the office. We reported this incident to the police the same day and police investigations are in progress. The police have not reported anything thus far,” he said.
This is the second time that the ministry gets robbed. Last year, two offices were broken into and two laptops were were taken from the information office and the African Union Sports Council (AUSC) Local Organising Committee office.
Although the ministry could not estimate the cost of one of the two laptops stolen, the computer was a personal machine of one of the workers at the ministry while the other laptop stolen was still new with its value estimated to the price of a new laptop and had no valuable information in it as it was new.