Professional recruitment will save Rwanda's soccer

Editor, RE: “FERWAFA should step in and save Rayon Sports” (The New Times, October 24). I agree with Ivan Mugisha that the football governing body, FERWAFA, needs to consider asking Rayon Sports to swallow a bitter pill of administration order to save the club from suicidal state. However, I think FERWAFA and other concerned government entities need to also supervise how coaches are “given jobs”. The hiring of Donadei in Rayon Sports may stand out as one of the ugliest in Rwandan football but the process may not have been smooth even in other teams. As the media started tearing the team’s leaders apart over the saga, I happened to follow a sports programme on a local TV and the presenter interviewed one of the committee members from Rayon Sports. The gentleman from Rayon Sports committee narrated that they took a decision to hire him (Donadei) based on pictures he had with some major football celebrities like Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo and so they thought he was an experienced coach given the assurances from his agent. This led me to ask: Who oversees whether hiring of coaches follows approved norms? Would I go and ask for a job in Bugesera FC just because I have pictures taken with Rooney or use the fact that he is my friend on Facebook? A team is like any other company and should follow approved norms of hiring as per the recruitment principles, team’s internal rules and the labor code. Companies use professional recruitment agencies to get them competent and experienced staff. This issue has been ongoing for a long time and I have never seen any job advert from any local teams calling for coaches. You will just hear that such and such team has a new coach but the procedures of hiring remain murky. One team almost hired a conman for a coach earlier this year, and when asked for documents, he turned out with falsified ones. I am very sure if any responsible agency supervises the hiring process, not only will we have competent coaches but we will also up the quality of football in our country and football will become a profitable undertaking. Why can’t FERWAFA intervene in this issue? I am of the view that managing and resolving recurring issues in local football would be one of their core mandates. Not only is this an issue of lack of professionalism, it is a bad practice that erodes what this country has achieved. Transparence, accountability and fairness should always prevail when signing up the best coaches for our teams. I am sure most fans would want their teams to hire the best to ensure value for money they contribute or pay at stadiums. I will continue to be a true fan to Rwandan football and my local team, hoping that change will come one day. Franklin Gakuba Murangira

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Professional recruitment will save Rwanda's soccer