The appointment on 8th December by the head of State of Mr Philippe Mbarga Mboa as the Minister of Sports is supported by the majority of Cameroonian football supporters and managers. Because he’s a former Club owner and president himself, he will be familiar with the issues. Valentine Molulu, Botafogo’s president explains. “I am sure he will start to tackle some of these issues or even lay the foundation for the advancement of sports and sports infrastructure in the country.” Molulu, the president of Botafogo agrees to answer questions from Camfoot. Below, he attempts to explain the poor performance of his team during this 2004 football championship. He also shows his point of view and suggestions to the Cameroonian football through the reforms Fecafoot experimented with last season…
Camfoot.com: Botafogo will play next year in second division. What impressions Mister president?
Valentine Molulu: I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the supporters for their relentless support. Especially those who have been with us since 1996. I would also like to thank everyone associated with the club, Executives, Players and Coaches for their service this season. We knew it was not going to be easy. It was a good learning experience. We have all taken some vital lessons from the last season and we will be back bigger and better as a result of our experience. Naturally, I am disappointed but its only football and in football you go down then you go up again. We were down there before so we are confident that we will be back in the not too distant future.
Camfoot.com: What can explain this poor performance of your club?
Valentine Molulu: There are several factors which contributed to this situation. The first is that we are a small and young club with virtually no experience of the league. Though I believe we are veterans of the second division championship. Hence we were not quite sure what to expect. It is usually normal that when a club goes up for the first time it is more likely to go back into the lower league it came from. Our recruitment was not so good. We always had difficulties scoring goals and as you know in football if you don’t score you cannot win. We certainly had a lot of inexperience and amateurish competencies through out the team from players, to coaches to management. I believe that we lost the will to win or to carry on after the debacle of the first round.
In the second round we were always struggling. And I think the league system was not the best as you have a team that is champion that did not play all the teams in the league. And you had teams relegated also that did not play all the teams in the league. I hope FECAFOOT will look at this system again. But we cannot complain all the teams were part of the system and we will accept our situation.
“Without a proper strategy and organization from FECAFOOT and all the other parties concerned we are going no where fast I might as well put all the money in a bucket and light it on fire.”
Camfoot.com: Some voices come out, claiming that you are far away from the direction of the club. And, that, the players were always suffering without any money to subsist well. Any reaction?
Valentine Molulu: I don’t see distance being a problem. There were people who were charged with the day to day running of the affairs of the club. The same team of people from the previous season so I can’t see this as an issue. These people are on the ground and are with the team everyday. I get daily reports of what is going on. And believe me it was all comical. In a situation like we have in Cameroon football, where everything is in ground zero state. No infrastructure, no spectators, no money and no good will to develop. Most individuals involved are only looking at their own pockets and how to fill them by whatever means. So the Presidents of the various clubs without the ‘parastatal’ backing are basically propping up a huge sinking ship. The football in its current guise cannot sustain itself. I spent this past season in Cameroon terms obscene amounts of money and in a business you will ask what is the return on investment. ZERO!
Alarm bells should be ringing, because we get involved in good faith but with little appreciation from those on the peripherals assuming that it all easy and straightforward.
But if you ask me whether I will do it again I will say certainly because this is what will make Cameroon develop one day. But without a proper strategy and organization from FECAFOOT and all the other parties concerned we are going nowhere fast, I might as well put all the money in a bucket and light it on fire. You see there must be tougher regulations and sanctioning of players, coaches, executives and teams as a whole. There is a total lack of discipline as the players tend to hold teams hostage with outlandish demands. 90 percent of the teams in the league this year were held to ransom by their players. Some barely survived by their teeth. (Canon, Tonnerre, Botafogo, Opopo, Unisport Bafang etc. and the list goes on.) Players will not turn up for training, some will not turn up for matches. But they still expect to be paid. If the game was generating revenues equivalent to 1/4 of the cost involved then it would not be an issue. Even though FECAFOOT gave subsidies to the teams it was just a drop in the ocean. We appreciate this but I still reiterate that the clubs should take ownership of their facilities like stadiums and be responsible for marketing the games and thus collect the bulk of the money just as its done in other parts of the world were the game is being run as a viable business. This will enable the clubs to be adding value every year when they are spending money. But at the moment most teams in Cameroon are vapor ware except those which are academies and this includes clubs with tradition like Canon, Tonnerre and Union.
Camfoot.com: Since you said that there is ZERO compensation of what you spend, what about the players going to Europe or elsewhere for tests? And I think there is something you have back no?
Valentine Molulu: No, you did not understand my answer. Football as a whole should not be reliant on selling players although it is part of the overall business. This is probably why the game is ailing back in Cameroon as the mentality of the players is that they want to play abroad. What are the real facts? This is probably not the right medium to address these issues but it is important that they are highlighted so we can begin to address them. Football is a kind of entertainment business. It is like going to the theater. But what makes it more interesting is that the passion of the fans supporting their team rubs off the players and makes the competition interesting. The Europeans don’t want African players anymore in their leagues. So they have all changed the rules to make it more and more difficult for players from Africa.
Camfoot.com: Since you opened the can of worms lets examine it. What is the market for Cameroon players abroad and what benefits are there for the teams in Cameroon?
Valentine Molulu: The standard price that is paid to most Cameroon teams for their players is 10 thousand Dollars if they are lucky. WHY? In Europe the players work football whilst in Cameroon the players play football. Most Cameroon players will not be accepted by a European team on the first time they attend a trial. 100% of the time. The players usually need 6 months to a season in an inferior league before they can even have a chance to make it. There are so many reasons why. Most of the players are not used to playing on a proper grass turf. They are not used to playing under flood lights. And the cold weather is also a problem. These are some of the reasons why the players are initially valued at such pitiful sums of Money. As soon as the player has made it after a season or two you see them being sold for millions of Dollars. Now, very few teams have the foresight to capitalize on this as the Presidents are in a desperate situation or the club is in need for funds so they are happy to take what is thrown at them. I am ready to help and advice any club president who is in the middle of a transfer transaction. I remember cases where I have advised some club presidents and because they have not taken my advice they have in the process lost large amounts of money and have sold players for 10,000 Dollars. This is a huge topic and we can discuss for days.
“The clubs should take ownership of their facilities like stadiums and be responsible for marketing the games and thus collect the bulk of the money just as its done in other parts of the world were the game is being run as a viable business.” Valentine Molulu.
So please let’s address this another time. Let us dwell or focus first on how to make football within the country sustainable and viable as a business. Look at the following scenario. Look at the following scenario: A team leaves Guider or Yaounde and travels to Bamenda or Buea. They have to displace roughly 25-30 people in the squad including coaches and team doctor.
The cost of doing that will be roughly 2.5Million CFA. This includes transportation, lodging and feeding. Now, after the game because of poor attendance they get 150,000CFA. This cannot even pay their transport to go back to where they came from. Now this is what I was talking about. As the problems on balance a deep and profound and extend beyond football. So we can’t even start talking about them now. But what we must do is recognize first that there are these issues and then develop the will to resolve these issues and then start tackling them one after the other in the order of priority.
Camfoot.com: According to this situation, would you be ready to take the club out in the second division? If not, what future do you leave to Botafogo?
Valentine Molulu: Well, I must take a long look at the situation and circumstances. In the balance of probability I am confident that in southwest we could be champions next year again. But, do I want to do that again, is another question. I will certainly change strategy. I may be going back to basics. I will strengthen the academy side of the club first before actually attempting to go up again. In the mean time I may just buy a club in Europe and invest my money where I could get a better and faster return on investment. I think its all open at the moment but I will still be there or there abouts in the Cameroon scene. So to answer your question I don’t know what I will do. I believe I need time to reflect and take stock. So, ask me this in January or February again.
Camfoot.com: Finally, what is your impression or comment about this new formula of the championship experimented this season 2004?
Valentine Molulu: As I said before, I am sure FECAFOOT had a reason to introduce the new formula. But, whatever that reason was it is not addressing the current problems in Cameroon football. I think we should get the basics right first. We have seen the state of the stadiums and we have seen the attendances at the games and the fortunes that result from that. The population and the fans must be respected as they are the paying customers who inevitably are going to buy the entertainment we put before them. When you setup a nightclub you want to make your customers feel welcome and comfortable as much as possible. The same applies to football. We should make the stadiums comfortable for the view public and fans. And even more comfortable and less of a hazard for the players who after all are the product.
Camfoot.com: Any interpellation to the elite of the Southwest since Botafogo will play next year in second division with Victoria United?
Valentine Molulu: I have nothing to say to anyone in particular. We gave it our best shot but we are down again. We will pick ourselves up, dust ourselves down and carry on fighting. I am sure southwest will have more teams in the division one championship in the coming years. We must be very assertive as we have two of the largest parastatals in our region yet we cannot have proper support for even one team. Sonara, CDC, Brasseries, Guinness etc…! What is happening to the sports budget of these companies? We must urge them to support sports for the development of the region and surrounding communities.
By Kisito NGALAMOU, ngalamou@camfoot.com
