Record high as four vie for BRU presidency
Calistus Kolantsho | Friday January 22, 2016 14:22
This year’s candidates are; the incumbent Elijah Jones, former president Dave Gilbert, former secretary general Mpho Masisi and recently retired player, Munya Mhonda.
A new entrant, Mhonda said rugby is perceived as a white man’s sport and that is a negative perception he hopes to address if elected into office. He said rugby is the fastest growing team sport in Botswana with over 120 government schools participating. He said all major tertiary institutions have an active men and women’s rugby teams.
“Publicity and showcasing these achievements is what has to be improved and that will attract the corporate world to what I believe is a positive brand to be associated with,” he said.
Mhonda said he has represented the nation from Under 21 to senior 15s teams. The former national team captain said he has won the Africa Cup on three different occasions (2004, 2007 and 2012). He said those were the only times the Vultures had won the cup.
He said his arrival in the BRU leadership would bring a winning attitude. “I have coached the boys Under 18 side, developed and coached the first women’s national 15 side. This is part of my roadmap where I will focus on grassroots development and equal participation of women in the sport, which is in line with the Olympic charter. This can only be achieved by having strong and competitive domestic leagues,” said Mhonda.
He said he intends to bring a new and energetic perspective into the union.
Among the contestants, Mhonda is the only candidate who has never held a leadership position before. He said he has the qualities needed to steer the union into a new era. For his part, Masisi said he is yet to ask affiliates to support his campaign. He said the current committee has not done anything to develop the sport. He said the committee has failed the sport.
Masisi said he wants to bring back the pride that rugby once had. He said by now rugby should be having its own stadium. He said when he was still in office, there had identified an investor in South Africa who was interested in financing the project.
“When we left office, we handed over the project to the committee but it seems that they were not interested. I even invited Jones to meet the sponsor, but nothing has happened. Those are some of the things I want to focus on,” he said.
Regarding the league sponsorship, Masisi said people should be robust. He said there are companies interested in assisting rugby.
Meanwhile, Gilbert said Africa Rugby and World Rugby Board have given him the green light to contest. He said despite that he is still negotiating with relevant stakeholders to decide the way forward. He said there are some conditions that he should fulfil before publicly showing interest. Gilbert said it will depend on the affiliates if they want him. He said the plan is to wrap up everything and by next week, he should be in a position to start campaigning.