Meat Men Facing the Chop

Yes, the end is nigh for The Fighting Cock’s adopted southern African team, Botswana Meat Commission FC.

As the name suggests, the team is backed by the Botswana Meat Commission, a state-owned company that oversees the country’s beef industry.

Unfortunately, the Commission is in financial meltdown and is the subject of a parliamentary inquiry where, like Jack Wilshere in a fighter jet, the accusations are flying thick and fast. Charges include corruption, mismanagement, racial discrimination and embezzlement.

Witnesses including BMC insiders and former president of Botswana Sir Ketumile Masire have given evidence to the select committee. A picture is emerging of a cabal of senior figures at the Commission using their position to make dodgy deals and even sabotage the BMC for their own advantage.

It has also come to light that the EU’s 2011 ban on beef from Botswana that did so much damage to the industry and wider economy could have been avoided, but the BMC knowingly instructed farmers to use a banned growth agent in their cattle feed. The ban has cost the BMC and ordinary farmers millions of pula — and the pula is not one of those currencies where a million isn’t a big deal.

So it’s bad news for the Meat Men, as well as ECCO City Greens, the team from the Francistown canning plant.

Modiri Garenamotse, who is on the Ezi-Nkomo management team, has kindly sent the following message to give a bit of background and the latest situation:

Botswana Meat Commission Football Club was formed by Security Guards working at the Lobatse Abattoir as way to keep fit & healthy.

The team did well and eventually BMC management decided to sponsor the guards to participate in the Botswana Football Competitions, eventually culminating into “The Super League”. This was way back in the late 1960s.

The relationship blossomed with the company exploiting the marketing clout derived out of this arrangement to showcase their products.

However, the company has had to re-evaluate and re-align their business strategy during which it was resolved that considering the fact that any income derived from marketing and sales of meat has to be passed on to the farmers, the continued bankrolling of the two teams – BMC FC & ECCO City Greens somehow hampers this intention, hence Management’s decision to gradually end the sponsorship, primarily to pass on the profits to the ordinary Motswana farmer – the sole purpose for which it was established.

Sponsorship value of the two Premier League teams is a combined BWP 5 million per annum. This includes salaries, travel and camping expenses as well as the day to day admin and operations of the teams.

Management has decided to maintain sponsorship of other sports such as darts, ladies football (Meat Girls FC), boxing and softball teams whose budget is just a few thousand Pula per annum.

The development calls for whoever has the financial muscle to come on board and take up the team to ensure continuity. The name shall be changed to the pleasure of the principal sponsor/owner. There are not too many supporters compared to other teams such as our cross-town rivals the Extension Gunners, and other teams such as Township Rollers, Mochudi Centre Chiefs and Gaborone United.

Regards,

Modiri

So, this week’s match against the Extension Gunners, which ended nil-nil, was perhaps the last ever Lobatse derby, and certainly the last under the Botswana Meat Commission FC name.

If any Fighting Cock listeners happen to be wealthy individuals interested in backing a football club in southern Africa, here’s your chance.

If not, it’s fingers crossed as the remainder of the Meat Men’s season becomes as much about catching the eye of a sponsor as it is winning silverware.

To keep up with the latest BMC news, check out the ongoing thread in the Fighting Cock forum. The Botswana paper The Sunday Standard also has news fairly often on the ongoing developments on the business side, which you can find online at www.sundaystandard.info

Until next time – keep it meaty.

Chico ‘Dance’ Nare – BMC FC Coach

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