Football Kenya Federation have maintained that they will continue to prepare Harambee Starlets for the Awcon finals set for Ghana.
This comes just a day after (Caf) confirmed in a signed statement that they had reinstated Equatorial Guinea and thus killing the hopes of Kenya’s Harambee Starlets from taking part in the tournament that is set to kick-off on November 17 in Ghana.
Kenya had appealed against the inclusion of Annette Jacky Messomo in the squad that eliminated the Starlets, and on September 8, the Caf Disciplinary Council ruled in favour of the East African nation.
FKF have now maintained that they will seek redress as per the statutes of Caf and Fifa, with the sole aim of promoting fairness and integrity of the sport.
“Consequently, we have written to Caf expressing our displeasure with the November 7, 2018, ruling and initiated an appeal process at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), with a view to having Kenya included in the tournament and/or stopping the same from commencing until the matter is heard and resolved.
“It is our belief that both Caf and CAS will treat the matter with the seriousness that it deserves, this even as Harambee Starlets remain in camp in preparation for our Awcon opening fixture against Zambia scheduled for November 18, 2018 at the Cape Coast Stadium, beginning 1830hrs.”
The federation also termed the ruling from Caf as unfair in a statement obtained by Goal. “We are profoundly astonished by the Appeal Board of Confederation Africaine de Football (Caf) decision to reinstate Equatorial Guinea to the 2018 Awcon, 10 days to the commencement of the tournament.
“As Football Kenya Federation, it is our position that the decision by the Caf Appeals Board is a great injustice not only to the Kenya national women football team Harambee Starlets but also to the millions of Kenyan fans spread across the world, the Kenyan government and the federation, which has since dedicated enormous resources in preparations for the 2018 Awcon.”
