09 Mar 2014

 Botswana Primary School Sports Association (BOPSSA) president, Busani Segweni is optimistic that Botswana will do well at the Confederation of Southern African School Sports Association (COSASSA) games scheduled for April 13 to 19 in Gaborone.

He said in an interview after the national BOPSSA athletes competitions which culminated with the selection of Botswana Team to represent the country during the COSASA athletics championships.

“I am impressed with the performance of the athletes as most of them had shown their potential and we managed to select the best athletes to form a strong team which would make the country proud,” he said.

The COSASSA games were a very high standard event that attracted eight SADC countries and athletes aged between 13 and 17 competing in track and field events.

He said initially they were expected to bring 40 participants but they had decided to bring 60 to the camp as part of the preparation so that they could select the best athletes out of that number.

During last year’s games, he said Botswana Team did wonders as they brought home many medals adding that they want history to repeat itself more so that they were the host.

Segweni also expressed disappointment about the non-participation of some schools from the Okavango Sub district noting that most of their best athletes who represented the country came from that district.

He said six schools pulled out from the national competition as a result of disagreement on sports overtime between the education  ministry and teachers.

He said it was an unfortunate situation , adding that  BOPSSA was hamstrung  as their mandate was to organise primary school games  and not to negotiate teachers’ welfare. 

He dismissed reports that BOPSSA negotiated with the employer to offer teachers 50 per cent over time payment and 50 percent day offs. 

In addition, he noted that the issues could be addressed by the Ministry of Education and Skills Development together with Botswana Teachers Union.

Segweni further revealed that at the moment they would focus on the selected athletes to build and motivate them to ensure they produce the expected results. 

“It is a pity that the athletes did not turn up even though we had high expectation from the North West as most of the athletes from the region had been excelling in the past competitions,” he said.

Asked if the issue of overtime affected all teachers, Segweni said it was an issue discussed country wide but some teachers decided to participate because they were passionate about sports.

Segweni said the national competitions were a success adding that all the regions came on time and had time to rest and prepare athletes. 

He said in the past they experienced challenges such as late arrival of regions, feeding of athletes and transport issues. 

“This year the organisation was of high class and everything was in place and I believe we would maintain the standard,” he said.

Regarding funding of the COSASSA event, Segweni observed that at the moment, BOPSSA had no funds and yet it has to accommodate officials from SADC countries. 

He said usually they get support from Botswana Sports Council and the Ministry of Education and  Skills Development as they usually assist with financing the event. 

He said BOPSSA had appealed to the corporate sector for sponsorship.

Lastly he urged the public to come in large numbers to support the team in action during COSASSA games. Ends