Relief programme leaves more
The Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development, Tumiso Rakgare’s relief fund announcement for sports has left some sport codes querying the process. Last week Wednesday, Botswana National Sport Commission (BNSC) requested, through a questionnaire, National Sport Associations (NSAs) to submit their plans of resuming activities post COVID-19.
Some associations argued the questionnaire did not give them room to explicitly lay out their plans. The guidelines of the programme were to be released on Wednesday. Some critics argue the BNSC’s questioner should have guided the release of the relief fund.
Botswana Chess Federation (BCF) president, Mothokomedi Thabano said they did not receive BNSC’s communication on the COVID-19 plans. He argues that some questions contained in the document are not useful.
“We have some chess players who depend on the sport for survival like International Master Providence Oatlhotse, Francistown School of Chess, Boikhutso Mudongo and Mosenya Ndawana. He said such players own chess academies where they teach children and parents pay. They have been making enquiries about the relief programme,” he said.
Thabano said it seemed like the focus of the relief fund was on football. He said it remains un