By Anderson Ojwang
In the 1980s–1990s, when Kenya’s football and the rivalry between the country’s two most successful teams, the Mighty Gor Mahia and the dreaded Ingwe, AFC Leopards, ticked, three names dominated.
Eng Alfred Wekesa Sambu, also fondly referred to as Abiola in reference to Nigerian Chief Moshood Abiola, a Nigerian millionaire who founded Abiola Babes, which became a formidable side in African football. Sambu and Abiola shared one thing in common: deep pockets and love for football. They would spend anything for football.
While Sambu ticked at the Leopard den, at the Mighty Gor Mahia the late Job Omino, as the patron, while Douglas Oyieng Dola was the chairman, called the shots and Kenya’s football glowed continentally, regionally and at home. The national team Harambee Stars became mainly made up of players from K’Ogalo and Ingwe. That was when Kenya’s football reigned and ruled continentally.
Sambu in 1984 led AFC to the semifinals of the Africa Cup Winners’ Cup, losing to Leventis United of Nigeria on a 2–1 aggregate after having won the first match by a solitary goal.
In 1987, Omino and Oyieng Dola won the cup, later renamed the Nelson Mandela Cup in his honour, at the City Stadium on a 2–2 score on away goal advantage, and Kenya’s name became scripted in Africa’s annals of football history.
Veteran Sports Editor and Analyst Mr Robbin Toskin said Sambu’s contributions to Kenya’s football cannot be downplayed and he deserves a special place in the country’s annals of history.
“Sambu was able to galvanize AFC Leopards as a family. He brought the team to play at the top league. He scaled the heights and only lost at the semi-finals of the Africa Cup Winners’ Cup to Leventis United of Nigeria in 1986,” he said.
Toskin said Sambu built a strong team which consisted of Kenya’s internationals Dr JJ Masiga, Mohammed Abbas, Wellington Lidonde, Robert Matano, Wilberforce Mulamba, Josephat Murila among others.
“We had one of the best players in the team and AFC Leopards had deep squad depth. Sambu built something special for the team. Those sweet old days. Very memorable and momentous. The King,” he said.
Toskin said Sambu single-handedly bankrolled the AFC Leopards team, catering for all the expenses. His pocket was so deep for Ingwe, his boyhood team.
“For the domestic league and continental games, Sambu bankrolled the team. One day, the team was stranded at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and could not travel to Cameroon to play against Diamore FC. Sambu just drove to the airport, purchased the tickets and the rest is history,” he said.
During the World Bank structural adjustment program in Kenya, which saw several football players retrenched from employment, Sambu still catered for their salaries.
Gor Mahia dominance and unbeaten run
One of the key missions of Sambu was to break Gor Mahia’s dominance of the league and indeed AFC won the league with an unbeaten record.
Toskin said Sambu created an aura in the Leopards family that made them indomitable and a force to reckon with.
“Sambu broke the Gor Mahia dominance and for the first time in history AFC won the league with an unbeaten record. He is a good man with a deep heart and pocket. He motivated players and had his way with the fans and the players,” he said.
Toskin said Sambu negotiated very crucial player deals for the team and won their hearts by driving the targeted players in a Mercedes Benz, and that would conclude the negotiations.
Toskin said Sambu broke the age-long belief that AFC Leopards could not lure and sign a player from the Gor Mahia outfit.
“Sambu broke Gor Mahia’s heart by signing their midfield engine, John Okello Zangi, and this heightened the rivalry. It was a bitter pill for K’Ogalo fans to swallow. He made history,” he said.
KFF chairman
Football administrator Tom Alila said Sambu was a powerhouse in Kenya’s football administration and became the KFF chairman in 2004.
Sambu became the chairman with Dan Omino as the Secretary General, but with the boardroom wrangles in 2005, Mohammed Hatimy’s team dislodged them from the office.
Failure to professionalize AFC Leopards
Toskin said one area that became Sambu and Omino’s undoing for both AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia was the failure to professionalize the teams.
“They did not professionalize the clubs. They had the ability and power to help the clubs become professional but they opted to drain their own pockets, which was unsustainable in the long run,” he said.
Currently, AFC Leopards are emerging from the shadows and challenging for silverware against bitter rivals Mighty K’Ogalo. This season Ingwe registered a first-leg victory over K’Ogalo and have seen remarkable progress in the league and stand in position two behind Mahia.
Pipping K’Ogalo to the crown this season would be one of the best dream-come-true moments for Sambu.
