Dangerous! My understanding usually gets beaten hands down when I attempt to figure out how Ferwafa boss, Brigadier General John Bosco Kazura, defines the media. Since he is virtually allergic to talking to the media, somebody close to him should at least volunteer information about afande’s perception towards the media. I have totally failed to understand whether he has media phobia or he just does not trust Rwanda’s media regarding accuracy in delivery of information. I recently got concerned after reading a news article in The New Times, authored by Hamza Nkutu and Bonnie Mugabe. In that article, the reporters were expressing their frustrations after being tossed around when they contacted Mr. Kazura for information regarding a possible move to secure national soccer league sponsorship from MTN Rwanda. It is reported that he refrained from making any comment as if there is nothing to comment about. He never denied that negotiations were going on but he simply declined to give updates. This reminds me of the day he was voted in the office. I physically reached him as soon as the elections exercise was over to pen down his comment and quickly told me he was yet to be ready to talk to the press. I did not insist and let it pass. A few days later, he flew out for a Fifa summit and I learnt of the day of his return a moment I thought I would catch him at the airport for an interview. Upon his arrival at Kigali international airport I managed to seek comments about his trip but all in vain. He simply said he would convene a press conference soon - the soon that was never the said soon. He was at one time invited for Cross Fire on Contact FM to chat about football situation in Rwanda and he never showed up. Etcetera! Well, if the FA president is not acquitted with the media functions what is the media department doing at the federation? I assume the federation has an effective media arm in case they realize the significance of dealing with media. What separates a great leader from a capable manager? Achieving leadership excellence and the rapid career advancement that comes with it requires more than intelligence, hard work, and dedication to sharing information. A clear and open management policy is the most powerful management tool ever. Successful transparency isnt simply letting it all hang out; to master this leadership style, Ferwafa boss must acquire a fine sense of how much and what information others can handle effectively and how to deliver that information in honorable, caring, and respectful ways. Youll learn how to develop an impeccable reputation, how to live up to that reputation every day, and how to use your good name to make yourself and your team. Ferwafa should learn how important it is to gain a transparency edge. Loathe it or not, a nothing-to-hide approach enables you to make decisions more efficiently and execute them more effectively, speed up operations, and increase productivity. Youll learn how to identify problems sooner and solve them faster; encourage trust and collaboration within the federation; and establish a higher level of credibility with other stakeholders in running football in Rwanda. Kindly take down these points, Mr. Kazura; be overwhelmingly honest about every situation, make others want to share information with you as well as sharing it with others, compose yourself in stressful situations, match your words to your actions, enhance your reputation even when you make mistakes and deliver bad news well. As such you can make a difference. Were I Mr. Kazura, I would build hype through updating the media on every step taken in the negotiations meant to secure sponsorship for the national soccer league from MTN. I do not understand whether Ferwafa understands how much the media hype would mount pressure onto any sponsor in negations to seal it. I think I understand that Ferwafa’s position now. The federation might be having qualms in the sense that the media guys would publicly tackle why Ferwafa fell out with the former league sponsors, Bralirwa. Certainly, Ferwafa might be categorizing this as a hurdle in bringing on a new sponsor. Like I said, you must learn how to enhance your reputation even when you make mistakes and deliver bad news well. Here’s my humble conclusion; one mans transparency is anothers humiliation.Ends
