Suspended Stima midfielder joins fight against match fixing

Having felt the ramifications of match fixing, suspended Western Stima midfielder Festus Omukoto is now on the forefront in fighting the vice.

The defensive midfielder alongside the duo of Moses Chikati and Festus Okiring were last year handed a four-year ban by Fifa for allegedly influencing results while featuring for Kakamega Homeboyz.

Ugandan national George Mandela wasn’t spared either as the global body served him with a life ban from all football related activities.

Omukoto, who had switched to Stima before the communication from Zurich is now advocating for a total elimination of the menace which is rumored to be gaining strong roots in local football competitions.

Last weekend, Football Kenya Federation launched on an integrity strategy of detecting and reporting match manipulation in a bid to weed out the practice.

Omukoto reached out to players who ply their trade in the FKF sanctioned leagues to put on their guards and report any cases on match manipulation rather than engaging in it.

“I call upon my fellow players to stay away from any form of match fixing. If a player is approached, he or should raise the red flag through the Kefwa ,” he said in an interview with Kefwa

The former Nairobi City Stars midfielder in the meantime lifted the lid on what life became after the suspension.

Omukoto painfully narrated on how the ban left him an isolated man as he barred from training with any club.

He says he has been keeping fit in the gym and individual road runs.

“Life has been hard from the time I was informed of the suspension. I found myself in situation which I didn’t want to be. I was confused and didn’t know where to begin. Since I can’t access any training pitch, I have to be content with doing gym work and road running,” he opened up