Editor,

I was shocked to hear about the tribulations that the Togolese football team underwent while they were traveling to their camp in Angola. Why would a bunch of rebels decide that the only way they will get independence is by machine-gunning unarmed footballers?

Its not logical. While some would have liked to see the Togolese team lining up and playing, I think they did the right thing in going home.

For despite the saying that ‘football isn’t life and death…it’s much more important than that” I don’t subscribe to the same theory. If I had seen a teammate die in a hail of bullets, I too would demand to leave.

However, for the rest of the teams, the football must come first and if the opening game is any indication, we are in for an exciting African Cup of Nations.

Linda Umutoni
Kiyovu