Mikia Kalati
THE Minister of Youth, Gender, Sports and Recreation, Mahali Phamotse has vowed to give each member of the Likuena squad a whopping M22 000 if the team beats Cape Verde on Sunday to qualify for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
The sports minister told the Lesotho Times in an exclusive interview that she left the country on Tuesday to meet with the team to motivate them ahead of the crucial encounter with the Blue Sharks.
Phamotse will also be part of the Lesotho’s delegation that will travel with Likuena to the Portuguese speaking country for the crucial tie set for Sunday.
Moses Maliehe’s side is second behind already qualified Uganda and needs a win against Cape Verde to qualify for the continental competition for the first time.
Likuena can also qualify if they get a draw provided Tanzania also drops points against Uganda in another Group L match that will also be played on Sunday.
“Indeed, we have incentives for the team if the qualify for the tournament,” Phamotse said.
“Usually when they travel, we give them M5000 and this time around we have increased it to M6000.
“If they draw but still qualify for the tournament the money will be increased to M10 000 for each member of the team. But if they win and qualify, each member will pocket M22 000. We could qualify for the tournament with a win or a draw provided Tanzania drops points against Uganda.”
Phamotse, who has been supportive to the team since succeeding the late Kabelo Mafura as the new sports minister early in 2018, said that the incentives are meant to motivate the squad to go an extra mile and rewrite history.
She said gone are those days when sport was regarded as mere pastime activity and said athletes need to remunerated accordingly for Lesotho to succeed at the big stage.
“Indeed, the incentives are meant to motivate the players to give their best on Sunday knowing that their talent can take them somewhere.
“Sports are important careers because players sacrifice a lot of their time. I’m also on a mission to ensure that the standards of sports in the country improve to attract more youngsters to take in different sporting activities.
“This will help us to improve as a country and avoid being a laughing stock for other countries. As much as the bonuses are for the football team now, it’s not only them that will get these benefits when they succeed. Other sporting codes will also be rewarded for their successes.
“I want to see kids developing interest for sports. Again, looking at things, the cooperate world has lost interest to invest in sports and I hope this will inspire them to come back.
“The bonuses come from taxpayers’ money and it would have been good to have companies also coming on board. There is a lot that can be done to improve the standards of sports in the country.
“I met the team in Pretoria on Tuesday to motivate them ahead of the big match and will be traveling with them to Cape Verde,” Phamotse said.
LeFA president Phafane thanked the minister for the financial support throughout the preparation. He also urged the country to pray for the team ahead of the match.
“It’s anybody’s game as all of Lesotho, Cape Verde and Tanzania have a chance of qualifying and I think the ball is in our court to secure qualification,” Phafane said.
“For me, I think we have to win because if we do, we are home and dry. For that, I wish the team the best of luck and we urge the country to join us in a praying for the team.
“It will be a huge honour not only to LeFA but the whole of the Basotho nation. The team has been in Pretoria, where it has been training like it’s the end of the world.
“We decided to take them to camp away from home, away from all the distractions so they the players focus only on what is ahead of them on Sunday,” Phafane said.
He also stated that the association faced difficulties in getting a short route to get to Cape Verde and ended up settling for a 31-hour route. The team left South Africa yesterday and are set to arrive in Cape Verde today.
“The best that has been found is to travel 31 hours via Doha and Morocco.
“The association has spent over M500 000 for its preparations. However, preparing the team has not been a one man show. The media should take credit for keeping the nation well informed. The sports ministry also deserves credit; it has played its role to the fullest. We have joined hands in the preparation.
“Most importantly, we are grateful to the clubs and the league for agreeing to postpone their matches to give the team adequate time to prepare. We thank for them because they always cooperate,” Phafane said.
The LeFA boss also said the ministry forked out over around M700 000 for the team’s return tickets.
