SEBEGO STEERS BELEAGUERED BFL

In a rather surprising move amid the ongoing local premier league saga, the Botswana Football League Board has enlisted the expertise of renowned lawyer Tebogo Sebego as the interim chairman of the Botswana Football League.

This strategic appointment comes on the heels of the legal showdown involving the ousted chairman, Nicholas Zakhem, adding an extra layer of suspense to the league’s already charged atmosphere. Sebego, a legal heavyweight, steps into the fray until the dust settles and the shareholders’ elected chairman, Godfrey Ratlhaga, can take the helm. The league finds itself at a crossroads, caught in the crossfire of a protracted battle between shareholders and the board.

As tension continues to mount,the enigmatic Sebego’s appointment injects a fresh dose of intrigue into the unfolding drama on the local football scene. During a meeting of the Botswana Football League shareholders in Palapye in December, Godfrey Ratlhaga was voted in as the new chairman of the league. Ratlhaga has since clarified to this publication that he will not assume the role of chairman until the legal case involving Nicholas Zakhem, has been settled by the court. This clarification is intended to avoid any confusion about the status of the chairmanship of the league.

“There was a court order in December to wait implementation of the resolutions of the shareholders (which elected me as chairman) to allow Zakhem and former BFL Director Jagdish Shah to submit their case to challenge the resolutions. So I can’t do my duties as a chairman until that is resolved, Mr Sebego has been nominated by the Board to lead until we have resolved the court case,” Ratlhaga said.

Ratlhaga stated that he is not sure whether Zakhem and Shah have actually submitted their challenge to the court, but he confirmed that Mr. Sebego will be in charge of the organization until the matter is resolved.

This is to ensure that the operations of the Botswana Football League are not disrupted while the case is pending.

Through a press statement earlier this week, the board announced Sebego as interim chairman of the Botswana Football League until the conclusion of any outstanding court cases, arbitration tribunals, or directors’ disciplinary cases.

The BFL board has also announced that it will meet with the shareholders on January 20, 2024, to discuss the current status of the association and the next steps to be taken.

According to a press statement, the league’s board met on January 14 and made the decision to suspend the chairman and another director. The board also made a number of resolutions, including the review of the BFL’s relationship with key stakeholders and the withdrawal of the court case against sponsor, Mascom Wireless Botswana, in the hope of finding common ground.