Blow as SDT halts appointment of FKF nominees to AFCON organizing committee

This development comes following a petition that is challenging the nomination criteria applied by the federation in selecting its representatives to the AFCON 2027 LOC.

Kenya’s preparations for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations could be slowed down somewhat following this decision, as the Local Organizing Committee is the one mandated to ensure rapid preparations so as to meet specified timelines.

This order comes as a result of the pending hearing and determination of this petition, which casts doubt on the overall integrity, transparency, fairness and inclusivity of the entire selection process.

Several allegations suggest that the nomination process violated key constitutional principles and governance guidelines.

The petition highlights a systematic failure to ensure regional balance and gender equity while simultaneously excluding over 20 deserving FKF branch chairpersons and other prominent members without any objective criteria.

Compounding these concerns, several individuals who are not official members of the FKF were selected without clear justification and multiple committee roles were reportedly undertaken by a select few candidates rather than distributed fairly across qualified stakeholders.

Furthermore, the petitioners argue that the nomination process bypassed established institutional protocols by failing to submit the proposed list of candidates to the FKF National Executive Committee (NEC) for official approval, as mandated under the FKF constitution.

Following this directive, the SDT has effectively frozen all pending appointments, ensuring the Ministry of Sports can take no further steps until the legal challenges are resolved.

The matter is scheduled for mention before the Tribunal on Tuesday, 28 of July, where further directions regarding the petition will be determined.

This poses a big question about Kenya’s preparedness ahead of the continental showpiece despite strict deadlines from CAF already set; prolonged decisions may consequently interfere with the set timelines for the country’s 100% readiness.