I had pencilled down my notes, quotes, and retorts to celebrate a prodigy enjoying a meteoric rise in global table tennis circles. A young, simple, unassuming lad by the name of Joseph Ssebatindira, who has brought the table tennis world to its knees and put everyone on notice that perhaps, finally, three-time Olympian Mary Musoke’s heir has come of age.
So, what swayed my attention away from this narrative? Well, an impassioned debate landed on my desk. Ok, if we are being technically accurate, I have no desk. Our office is a newsroom hive with an open-plan setting, meaning one picks a spot that resonates and “puts in the work”. But for the purposes of this article, “my desk” it is.
Now, where was I? Yes, an intense debate on the fate of Express Football Club.
If you are behind the times, let’s bring you up to speed. The seven-time Uganda Premier League champions have had their matches suspended by FUFA as investigations into acts of hooliganism following their draw with UPDF continue. The allegations state that suspected fans waylaid assistant referee Fahad Sekayimba and pummeled him in retaliation for his involvement in the late equaliser that denied their team three points in Bombo.
The referees’ body, UFRA, responded by boycotting officiating duties until action is taken against those responsible, bringing the league to its current impasse.
Amid the debate on sanctions and what action should or should not be taken, it struck me how an appropriate plea has rarely been directed at the fans whose actions repeatedly bring us to these dire situations.
Onduparaka now languish in the second tier of Ugandan football, still ruing their final season in the top flight. They were forced to play away from home and suffered a points deduction due to misguided efforts by fans “fighting for their team’s justice”.
SC Villa suffered a similar fate. While they avoided relegation, they arguably paid a heavier price as the points deducted ultimately cost them the title and a chance to end an almost two-decade wait for league glory.
Busoga United survived the drop by the skin of their teeth, while Kataka failed to secure promotion, all because of fans who chose to “fight for their clubs”.
Modern culture has played a massive role in promoting the street code of “snitches get stitches” and the Sicilian code of silence, omertà. Sadly, while this mindset has faded in most sporting disciplines, football seems to cling to it. Could this be why hooliganism continues to rear its head in the beautiful game?
Forgive the stereotype, but rugby is often regarded as a violent sport by the average person. One would assume that fan violence in the stands would follow suit. Wrong. If anyone starts trouble, nearby fans, often supporting the same team, are usually the first to step in. More often than not, the offender leaves the grounds before the final whistle with a story they will not forget anytime soon.
During the 2022 National Basketball League playoffs, emotions ran high as the Nam Blazers attempted to dethrone the City Oilers. In one game, an overzealous Nam Blazers fan hurled an empty plastic bottle at a City Oilers official. What followed was remarkable. Fellow Nam Blazers fans handed him over to security and escorted him out, briefly pausing their chants of “We are removing a dictator” to accompany his exit with “Take him out”.
Is it really so far-fetched to ask football fans to borrow a leaf from this and adopt a zero-tolerance stance towards hooliganism?
There is no honour in upholding a street code in situations that do not belong to the streets. For many, football and sport in general offer an escape from those very environments.
And for those taking up arms in the name of their clubs, UB40, ahead of their event on 15 December 2023 at Kololo, posed a fitting question through their album title: Who You Fighting For?
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in 2023 on https://jermaineegesawrites.wordpress.com/2023/11/05/but-what-do-i-know-2/
