‘Tired of tomorrow’, Malkia Strikers demand unpaid allowances ahead of world championship

The Ministry of Sports has come under fire after the Kenya women’s national volleyball team  team protested over unpaid allowances owed to them.

Led by the Nairobi Senator and ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna, Sports Cabinet Secretary Salim Mvurya has been accused of deceiving the Senate over the payment of allowances owed to national teams.

The players also pointed a finger at Kenya Volleyball Federation (KVF), stating that the federation has not been forthright with the funds received from their sponsor, Mozzart Bet.

According to Sifuna, the Ministry of Sports is yet to clear the allowances despite CS Mvurya saying the Ministry had secured Sh70million.

“I’m keeping quiet for now so that the Harambee Stars boys can play and no one says I’m discouraging them. But moving forward, we must tell each other the truth. The CS for Sports was in the Senate over a month ago, lying that he had secured Sh70million to clear all outstanding allowances for national teams, including the Sh2million for the Lionesses. He has not paid to this day, despite taking photos with them and a dummy cheque over three months ago,” Sifuna stated.

The Kenyan volleyball team, which is currently in Thailand for the World Volleyball Championship, released a video today saying they have not yet received their allowances despite unending promises by the ministry.

The team asked CS Mvurya to honor his promise to them on clearing the outstanding allowances, as they urged President William Ruto to motivate them like he did the Harambee Stars team.

The volleyball queens say they have not received a single cent from the Ministry of Sports ever since they began training at Nyayo Stadium, despite many promises.

“The promise was that we would receive our allowances before we got into the residential camp at Summerdale Inn. We were told that the allowances for the time we trained at Nyayo would be credited to our accounts. However, what we have heard since then are promises that the money would be paid ‘tomorrow’. Any time we ask for allowances, the answer is ‘tomorrow’. It has always been ‘tomorrow,” Pamela Adhiambo, who read a statement on behalf of the players, said.

“We were promised that all the allowances would be credited to our accounts before we travelled to Vietnam, but that didn’t work out. We have been asking our Kenya Volleyball Federation (KVF) bosses, but they have been telling us they are waiting for the ministry,” She added.

The players further said efforts to raise their grievances with Sports Cabinet Secretary Salim Mvurya were unsuccessful.

“We got a chance to meet the CS, and he was so happy to host us. In the back of our minds, we wanted to tell him our issue, but we were stopped. We were told that everything was sorted and we accepted…we were told we were going to get everything, but funny enough, with less than 48 hours to the tournament, we got the tracksuits. We can’t say they are the best quality, but at least we are happy that we have got them,” she said.

They claimed that the betting firm has released funds, which have not fully trickled down to them.

“We were told that money was released, which was used to cater to our different necessities. But, we were also promised that the money was released and we should be funded, so we are also asking, who was given the money within the federation? To whom should we direct this question so we can get the allowances from Mozzartbet?” Adhiambo posed.

“Today we have decided to call a spade a spade and decided to speak because we are tired of tomorrow. It pains us to have to do this video, but we had to let it out and let it be known that Malkia Strikers are not at their best,” she added.

Speaking at the same time, team captain Meldina Sande admitted that the whole squad, including the technical bench, is suffering.

She appealed to President William Ruto to extend the same generosity to them as he has done for Harambee Stars.

“KVF, we ask you to help us achieve that mission. We came here with a target, and we don’t want to lose it. Bwana President, we are also your children…motivate us. Bwana CS, you promised us that our money would come…help us. We need something so we can achieve what we came here to do,” the skipper said.

The players promised that they would give their all at the global showpiece as they seek to build upon their progress at the last edition in the Netherlands in 2022.

“We are suffering…that’s why we are making this kind of video. Everyone here is suffering…the players and the coaches, but since we came here with one target, we don’t want anything to distract us,” Sande said.

Kenya plays Germany in the first match of Pool G on Friday, with games against Poland and Vietnam to come.

The concerns raised by the Malkia Strikers team come in handy as the 10-time African champions qualified for the World Championship two years ago, and the Ministry was aware of their calendar of events.

“We qualified in 2023 for the World Championship… 2 years ago,” Midecha Gladys stated.

“Two years later, the Volleyball Federation didn’t put measures in place to make sure we don’t get here, now is when they are issuing statements after the girls decide to speak for themselves,” Alex Ronal added.

Replying to the video by Malkia Strikers, Kenya Volleyball Federation Deputy President Paul Bitok assured the girls that everything would be in order by the time he arrives in Thailand.

“I will travel tonight after ensuring everything is in order. I kindly request all players and technical staff to stay focused on today’s match, as all financial matters will be resolved today,” Bitok stated.

Apologizing for the delay, Bitok stated that he was in communication with the ministry today, and they assured him that all was well with nothing to worry about.

“I was at the Ministry to follow up on players’ allowances. The process is at its final stage, and the allowances will be deposited into each player’s account soon. The Ministry has been processing similar payments for all sports, including the recently concluded U20 Girls’ competition and beach volleyball. Players will receive their allowances from the Ministry. We are sorry for the delay, but all will be sorted,” he added.

The FIVB Women’s World Championship is scheduled to run from today to September 7.

This is the Malkia Strikers’ first major outing since the 2024 Paris Olympics, where they exited at the group stage.

Under new leadership, the team hopes to build on their performance at the 2022 World Championship in the Netherlands, where they recorded a straight-sets victory over fierce rivals Cameroon.

With fresh talent and renewed ambition, the Malkia Strikers aim to make their mark on the global stage.