‘Stop your false accusations against us’, Netball Drags NCS in Courts of Law

After trying all possible channels to regain their freedom but only hitting dead ends, Uganda Netball Federation Executive Committee has opted to drag National Council of Sports into courts of Law.

Since 2021 after the Africa Netball Championship held in Nambia, Uganda Netball Federation and sports governing body National Council of Sports have been on loggerheads over the issues of governance and accountability.

The two parties have held a number of meetings with mediators, including the First Lady who doubles as the Minister for Education and Sports, Janet Museveni and one of the meetings, First Lady asked Hon. Babirye Kityo Sarah to take a leave for a period of three months to allow smooth investigations to which she did.

However, it’s now six months since that happened but the reports never been disclosed. Of recent on 19th October 2023 National Council of Sports wrote a letter addressed to Netball Uganda threatening to withdraw their operational certificate if they don’t disclose their sources of funds and why they have six bank accounts in Equity bank and yet they were not disclosed to council.

In response to the letter, Uganda Netball Federation Executive Committee through their lawyers, Luzige, Lubega and Kavuma Co. Advocates sued National Council of Sports for putting their nose into the matters of netball which were already settled by Inspector General of Government, Attorney General, and Auditor General.

In the press briefing she held today, Tuesday at the federation head offices at Aga Khan Building Old Kampala, UNF elected president, Hon Babirye Kityo Sarah refuted all the NCS claims and also revealed as to why they dragged their supervisory body into courts of law.

“…..I think it’s high time National Council gets to know that the entire world know they hate us and the are so bias when it comes to issues of Babirye being a leader of UNF, they are capable of doing anything, if am to comment about that letter, when we came into the office, we found one account for the federation, it was in Stanbic bank and it was a savings account….we agreed as executive, let’s go to the AGM and we seek for permission to have many bank accounts to which they accepted and appointed our bankers; Stanbic bank, Bank of Baroda,DFCU, Equity Bank, we might not have opened up accounts in all these banks but this is what we agreed from the AGM of 2022.” Says Babirye.

“We wrote to NCS, they gave us recommendation, we opened up two accounts but we stopped transacting on one in September 2022 though not closed, but the other account is the only one which is operational, it’s the account where all our clubs pay money, it’s the account that received money from UOC for Commonwealth, it’s the account where our sponsors put money, so I challenge National Council to come up with the bank statement that shows who deposit money from the Six accounts and who withdraws it.”

“There is nothing that we are hiding but if someone has some thing on you, he or she finds all ways to dirty you.”

About the accountability of the 960M and 720M and why it’s NCS to respond not Byekwaso.

“We were shocked when we wrote to the Brig. Gen. Flavia Byekwaso asking her to account for the money that she got from the government, the 960m and the 720m, she didn’t respond, all we saw was the letter from NCS threatening to withdraw our certificate, the question is why is it that when it comes to issues of accountability in Netball, it’s NCS to react?

“To me, I was given 186m, I took 27 people in Namibia for 21 days, I accounted for the funds on 25th of November and by 9th December National Council had responded and raised queries, since last financial year as UNF we haven’t received accountability for the 960m, so is it right for NCS to receive and clear accountability that we don’t own as UNF?” She asked.

On why they opted for legal routes.

“We’re stack, we don’t know now where to go to because we have been everywhere; IGG, Auditor General, Attorney General, PAC but still with all these reports in our favor and pinning NCS, they think the best option and what they could do to hide all this mess is to withdraw our certificate that’s why as UNF we decide to go legal, we don’t want to be like Kickboxing, let’s go legal at least Ugandans will know that we have tried to defend the sport that we love so much.” She explained.

About the queries of whether she is not scared of being killed since she is on loggerheads with a solider who is a brigadier general, Babirye had this to respond.

“Death is something that may happen to anyone, whether you are a solider or civilian like me, I cant say that I am going to shy away because am dealing with a solider, after all there are guns all over here, she recruited UPDF officers who work here, we challenged that as executive but she has forcefully kept on bringing these people here and of today they are here but she said she is answerable to Maama, it’s the First Lady she is answerable to, so she doesn’t listen to anyone.”

Actually have even received threatening calls, I even reported this to Police, so I can’t run away because some people are busy intimidating me, I have the mandate to protect the sport in and out side Uganda, that’s why we decided to go to court to stop all these things.” She Said