NAIROBI, Kenya, September 23, 2026 – Former Cabinet Secretary and 2027 Presidential Aspirant Eliud Owalo has issued a scathing indictment of the ongoing legal paralysis in Kenyan football, calling for an immediate, unconditional withdrawal of all court cases to save the 2026/27 FKF Premier League from total collapse.  

Owalo condemned the “cartelism,” infighting, and grandstanding among football administrators, warning that four weeks of delays have left players without livelihoods and pushed preparations for AFCON 2027 to the brink of disaster.  

At the center of the standoff is the administrative rift over promotion and relegation guidelines between the 2019 and 2025 FKF Regulations.

Under the 2025 FKF Regulations, the traditional playoff was eliminated, condemning 16th-placed Kariobangi Sharks to automatic relegation.

However, aggrieved parties argue that the 2025 guidelines were improperly implemented mid-season, contending that the league must legally revert to the 2019 framework.

Under those older rules, Kariobangi Sharks would fight for their top-flight survival in a two-legged playoff against second-tier National Super League side Mombasa United.  

The resulting flood of High Court injunctions from multiple factions has effectively locked the league in administrative gridlock.

Owalo noted that this is a moment for sobriety and reason, rather than muscle-flexing, urging stakeholders to end the bickering and call out those willing to let footballers suffer for self-interest.  

“I do not want to go into the intricacies and details of the legal battles or who is right or wrong. What we need is a solution. This is a moment for sobriety… It is time to condemn the cartelism that has hijacked the game we so dearly love. It is time to call out those who will not stop at anything, even if it means our sons, the footballers who depend on the game to put food on the table, are left to go hungry, heartbroken, and on the brink,” the former CS said.

To break the deadlock before sponsor funding and broadcast rights investments are permanently damaged, Owalo outlined a direct emergency proposal.

He called on all aggrieved parties to unconditionally withdraw every pending case currently before the courts to clear the legal runway.  

With the courtroom obstacles removed, Owalo urged FKF President Hussein Mohamed, the National Executive Committee (NEC), and all Premier League club chairmen to convene an urgent roundtable to negotiate a realistic kickoff strategy.

He emphasized that extraordinary circumstances demand extraordinary measures, noting that civil heads within the KPL caucus must put the game above personal ambitions.  

Finally, Owalo placed responsibility on the government, calling on Sports Cabinet Secretary Salim Mvurya to step up and offer active leadership rather than fence-sitting.

He stressed that the ministry must shepherd the game toward a resolution through active mediation without crossing into political interference.  

Owalo expressed shock that domestic football remains completely stalled less than 10 months away from co-hosting the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) alongside Uganda and Tanzania.

He warned that without active domestic fixtures, the Harambee Stars technical bench has nowhere to scout or maintain match fitness for home-based talent, making the country’s stadium readiness talk meaningless if the players themselves are sidelined.  

“We cannot week in, week out, brag about the grandiose nature and readiness of the Talanta City Stadium when the most important stakeholder, the footballer, is on the brink,” Owalo said.

Drawing a sharp contrast, Owalo lauded Athletics Kenya for securing the rights to host the historic 2029 World Athletics Championships in Nairobi, marking the first time the global showpiece comes to African soil, as proof of what structured, visionary sports administration can achieve.  

With billions of shillings in corporate sponsorship, broadcast investments, and young careers on the line, Owalo urged stakeholders to let common sense prevail and return football to the pitch.