Several days after the Garissa University memorial race was postponed, it has now emerged that lack of funds led to the stalling of the annual commemoration event.
According to Citizen TV, lack of sponsorship was the major factor that compelled Athletics Kenya (AK) North Eastern Branch to push the event from April 2 to a later date that is yet to be made public.
While responding to an inquiry by the TV channel, the AK Garissa Branch Chairperson Abdullahi Salat regretted the unfortunate twist, affirming that the race has been a great motivator to many athletes from the North Eastern region to showcase spotting talents.
"We have tried our best to find a sponsor from corporate organizations to the local government, but unfortunately we have been unable to secure one. We, therefore, have no alternative but to postpone it,” Salat said as quoted by Citizen TV.
In 2018, the event attracted as high as 200 athletes with the majority coming from outside Garissa county. During the event, winners pocketed a cool Sh100,000 as the winning prize.
The race also provides an avenue for relevant stakeholders to educate and promote security and community policing in the region that has suffered occasional attacks from Al Shabaab.