Dinaletsana cry foul over allowances, kit
Naledi Lemogang | Friday July 28, 2017 15:19
Some players told Mmegi Sport they had been forced to return the kit, which was used during the tournament. The players, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the challenges started before the tournament when allowances were paid late. There were reports of a brief strike over allowances and the matter was reported to the Botswana National Sport Commission (BNSC). The players were allegedly rebuked when they questioned how matters, including allowances, were handled.
“The reason why we lost our game against Zimbabwe is that we were angry because before the match, we were told that we should return our tracksuits. We were also told to return the kit which has our names on it,” one disgruntled player said. They claimed the P1.2 million sponsorship from Debswana was meant for the team, but they were surprised when the money was channelled elsewhere.
The players said they have not been paid their appearance fee and are getting no answers for the delay. They say they went into camp on June 30, but the money they received only covers from July 6 and there has been no explanation.
“The money covered the trips that were planned before the sponsorship came forth. When we asked about the money when we were in Australia, we were told that Debswana had released half of the money,” one player said. She added that when they questioned most of the issues during camp, they were dismissed or in some instances, did not receive feedback. At one point, they decided to down tools. The reason advanced for returning the kit is that BONA wants to frame it.
“Our team manager, Flora Kedibonye told us that we have to return our kits following an instruction from BONA president, Tebogo Lebotse-Sebego. They did not make any agreement with us to take the kit back. The attire was part of the sponsorship and it is surprising they behave as if the kit belongs to the national team,” the players said. They said some of the players are refusing to hand over the tracksuits, arguing that BONA had already taken back the training attire, purchased through the Debswana sponsorship.
“We want to take the matter to the BNSC as we feel we were not properly consulted on this issue,” the players said. Lebotse-Sebego explained that after every national assignment the outgoing team is required to return one tracksuit, which is then made available to the next team. “We have asked Dinaletsana to return their kits, which has their names on it so that we frame and donate it to the national museum. Furthermore, the players who participated at this historic event are properly archived and documented in the history books of Botswana,” Lebotse-Sebego said.
She added that this is a BONA initiative, therefore they do not need consent from the BNSC nor the players to take the kit back. She said that the outstanding fees would be attended to since they have made submissions to the government through the BNSC as per policy. “As far as I am concerned I know allowances have been paid, I will check if there is any part outstanding,” she said.