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‘Juju’ claims mar Gor Mahia game against Bandari


Build up to Sunday’s Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Premier League match pitting hosts Bandari against Gor Mahia was marred by drama amid accusations of witchcraft leveled across the two camps.

A video in Nairobi News possession show stewards attached to both teams physically confronting each other on the pitch hours to the game at the Mbaraki stadium in Mombasa.

In the clip, Bandari officials are heard accusing Gor Mahia of sprinkling ‘juju’ on the pitch. There was some white substance at the centre of the pitch, akin to the white paint used to mark the grounds.

Bandari officials who spoke off the record accused their opponents of using unsporting means to win the match but the Kenyan champions contingent pleaded innocence.

” They have come with people who are sprinkling some white stuff on the pitch while telling us that we will not score a single goal in the game. This is against the rules of fair play. We tried to stop them but they are forcing their way into the grounds,” explained a Bandari steward.

The Gor camp differed: “We have a right to access the pitch and inspect its state as part of our preparations for the match. Bandari are just scared of our presence. Nothing else. We are not a juju club.

“Gor won the match 3-1 thanks to a double from Burundian hotshot Jules Ulimwengu.

There have been claims of juju in Kenyan and African football but most of it has not been proven.

Besides, it is yet to be scientifically proven that ‘juju’, if it exists that is, can influence the outcome of a football match