University students who qualified for international games to be held in North Korea beginning Monday have called on the Ministry of Sports to facilitate their travel for the games.
Speaking during a press briefing in Mount Kenya University Thika on Thursday, the students who were accompanied by their leaders said that they are saddened by the act of negligence that the Kenya University Sports Association (KUSA) has portrayed by facilitating the travel of only the officials to the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) games.
According to the Jomo Kenyatta University students President Mr Jomo Erick, the students requires Sh15 million for accommodation and other expenses which should be facilitated by KUSA. He accused the association of sponsoring only its officials who are not going to participate in the games.
Jomo called on the Sports Cabinet Secretary Dr Hassan Wario to intervene immediately and facilitate the students who will be representing Kenya in the games. They were supposed to leave on Friday.
He said the association should be disbanded immediately and a new one set up as the officials have not been involving students in any sporting activity despite receiving funding from the ministry.
The athletes have threatened to storm the offices of the CS in case they don’t get facilitation as the institutions have failed to pay anything saying that they are not associated with the IAAF games. They want the government to pay for their travel.
In a phone interview, the Secretary General of KUSA Mr Fred Onyango said that they were not funded and that they are paying every penny they will use in the trip from their pockets adding they are not using the association’s funds.