He is usually a smiling and calm gentleman who mingles with the media with ease. On Wednesday morning the scribes were left speechless when Botswana Football Association (BFA) president Tebogo Sebego came with a different tact- losing his temper in order thus intimidating the scribes from asking questions. All this happened at Lekidi Football Centre during the announcement of the new Technical Director Benny Kgomela and Zebras’ head coach Peter Butler. Sebego’s unruly attitude on the day left the football journalists with a bitter pill to swallow with some wondering what could have let to him losing it. ┬áSome journalists even said that Sebego should not have called the press conference if he knew that he was not in the mood to field questions.
A day after the briefing, Sebego said that he had a chance to reflect on the proceedings and admits that what happened was uncalled for. “I would like to apologise to the media fraternity and other stakeholders for what transpired on the day. I accept that I was militant and that is not how I am. The truth of the matter is that I was frustrated by what transpired in the build-up to yesterday’s briefing where I felt that some people were unfair to football,” said Sebego on Thursday afternoon. The BFA boss feels that it was unfair for some media sections to report negatively on Kgomela even before he resumes his term. He further pointed out that some members of the association deserve the blame because they are the ones who fed the scribes with misleading information.
“People polluted the environment and as a leader I felt that it was my responsibility to protect the guy. These are the challenges that football leadership brings and I think I’ve learnt from that. What I want to make clear is that I’m human and I’m bound to make mistakes,” Sebego added. Prior to last week’s announcement, it was reported that Kgomela’s appointment has left some members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) fuming. BFA vice president technical Ernest Nthobelang came into the open saying that Kgomela was appointed without being consulted. Nthobelang felt that he was undermined as the head of technical at BFA. “I’m glad that the matter has been addressed and Nthobelang has given the technical director his blessings. We have to note that this (Kgomela’s appointment) was a constitutional decision of the NEC.
Nthobelang met with Kgomela on Wednesday and they mapped a way forward which is good for our football,” said BFA boss. Nthobelang confirmed that they have managed to bury the hatchet in the best interest of football. He said that they have made a commitment to Batswana that they will improve the game so that is what matters. “Despite the differences we had what matters most is football. I met with Kgomela and we mapped the way forward. I never said that he (Kgomela) is not capable, I was just saying that as a head of technical I was not informed. It was a matter of procedure,” said Nthobelang. ┬á
