BASKETBALL EYES VACCINATION FOR ALL

EZULWINI – “The year became a roller–coaster ride, making it impossible to find a perfect opportunity to conclude all our business.”

These were comments by Basketball Association of Eswatini (BASE) President Nhlanhla Maphanga during the annual general meeting (AGM) which was held at MTN Clubhouse on Sunday. He made these comments during the president’s address which was the first item during the meeting. The meeting comes after the association had to try to re-adjust to the COVID-19 challenges following that last year, they hosted a similar meeting but had to adjourn due to that they had to sort financial statements.

COVID-19 as highlighted by the president also played a huge role in derailing them hosting the meeting which was adjourned also due to that they had to adhere to the two-hour minimum time for gatherings. The association according to the president in his address had been trying to find time to call their affiliates to the meeting. Just in August this year, the association tried to host the AGM but it was not a success because only five teams managed to connect to the zoom meeting. It had to be deferred and was finally held this past Sunday.

Strain

“The pandemic has put a massive strain on the executive and its operations. Physical meetings have become impossibility. Virtual meetings present a challenge of each member having to ensure they have personal data for meetings,” Maphanga said. “By waiving the affiliation fee requirement for the last two years has lead to the association receiving no income. This means the executive members had to foot their own bills in executing their duties,” he said.

He also highlighted the restriction on activities had lead to the freezing of sponsorships. He said, however, their major sponsor, MTN kept their door open for discussions. “The challenge is with the ability of clubs to adhere to strict regulations imposed for participating in competitions.” He said that the pandemic had forced them back to the drawing board. “One consideration is to join the drive by football and consider vaccinating all our players and officials. We hope this will ease up restrictions for us to have competitions,” he said.

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