Ugandan football does not have many men like Dan Walusimbi. The use of the word ‘men’ holds special relevance in this case. Anyone that is anything less than a real ‘man’ would never pull off half the fight Walusimbi pulled off—for five years no less. It is for that reason that he is my pick for discussion in this space this week. First, for the uninitiated, Walusimbi is the man who is, is masquerading as, has been trying to be, or might be the new Fufa president. It depends on who you talk to, or more appropriately, who you choose to take seriously.
What has catapulted him into the football limelight is a relentless desire to resist what is obviously an illegality—a Fufa that operates as a limited company—one that only those that read the rule books upside down could find a way to justify. I am not by any chance devoting my precious column space to declaring my ‘side’ in the contestation between Moses Magogo’s Fufa and Walusimbi’s faction, I am not even going to give in to the temptation to discuss the complex mix of unbridled passion and uncanned preposterousness that Walusimbi always seems capable of even in the tiny space of a thirty-second interview. You just have to listen to get my drift. Don’t watch, you might be overwhelmed.
What I find worthy of celebration after an eventful last few weeks in Ugandan football is the fact that there is a man that is willing to stand up for that which they believe in. Anyone that sets out hunting men of such caliber in our local game is almost certainly doomed to fail. From the men involved with our refereeing to those involved with our clubs to those that run our national team to those invested in our local leagues, principle and honour are commodities that are not only in short supply but perhaps even shorter demand. There are dozens of examples to pick from; men that once swore football clubs should have the right to run the league (and rightly so) turning around to hop into bed with the same Fufa whose greed and simple-mindedness they previously valiantly fought.
Our football is laden with men who, for years sacrificing personal finances, legal brains and common sense, among other resources, to challenge the fact that a national federation could not and should not be a limited comp-any, suddenly turned around to give that questionable arrangement their seal of approval—because it what was expedient to flip-flop when they flip-flopped. With men like that, it is hard not to be awe of Dan Walusimbi. It is without doubt easier to be a turncoat than it is to be a Walusimbi; to be mocked yet remain unshaken. To trip and still get back up. What’s not to like about Walusimbi?
essekalo@matookerepublic.com
