We are victims of racism - Shah, Zakhem

Accusations of racism and discrimination against local football moguls have erupted in the midst of Botswana Football League’s internal bickering as Nicolas Zakhem and Jagdish Shah decry victimization.The duo have endured a difficult time in recent memories of leading the local football league, with Zakhem taking up the role of BFL board chairman while Shah assumes the position of being the treasurer of the league.Some disgruntled BFL shareholders have taken a strong stand since late last year and voiced their clear intensions to have the Gaborone United director, Zakhem and former Township Rollers President, Shah, removed from their positions within the BFL.Both Zakhem and Shah were reportedly suspended from the BFL by their denouncers, a move that prompted the duo to seek redress before the court of laws to defend their standing and status within the company, BFL.During a media briefing at Lekidi this week, the two businessmen expressed shock of their lives with how they have been treated, adding that the attacks they suffered are unwarranted and could only be because of racialdiscrimination.“It is unfortunate, I have not done any harm to anybody, I have not spoken a single word about anybody, why me, why us. What is sad is that with this kind of behavior, a deterrent is being built for international investment. I was spending a lot of my money on football and the people of Botswana, why must I continue doing it, these guys don’t realize this but maybe it is what they want. What we are subjected to is a lot of pain,” Shah told this publication during a sideline interview chat after the press briefing.Further to it, the BFL chairman stated that there is a lot of interference and attacks on the BFL by several sources, making references to statements such as, “our football is run by foreigners”.“I feel really attacked, getting comments such as, ‘football is run by foreigners, they are controlling football’, and who are the foreigners, it is Jagdish Shah and Nicolas Zakhem. We are the natural citizens of this country and we have the right like everyone in this country, this is a country that gives opportunity to everyone and that is why we are here. Football is commercial, it is privatization and football contribute to the growth of the economy and that is why we are here. We have seen growth in our football, we seen order, discipline; there might be no money but we are seeing good progress, we deserve to be credited and not be attacked,” Zakhem uttered his frustrations.“We’ve been supportive and we have done all that we can for this country, I was shocked and saddened to hear about these comments, the immigration of this country has accepted us as citizens, so it is really sad, our souls, our everything are part of this country,” Shah echoed the words of his great ally, Nicolas Zakhem.Zakhem also made references of the international football community, citing ownership of clubs like, Machester City, Manchester United, Paris Saint-German (PSG), Barcelona and Real Madrid being owned by foreigners to highlight the influence of international investors on football development.Shah also told BG Sport that, he is currently not considering to take up any football project in the country and dismissed any possibilities of returning to Township Rollers, after reports emerged suggesting that he could rejoin the country’s most successful club.“For now I am on sabbatical from football, leaving football left a lot of pain in terms of the way I was treated, which I don’t understand. Even as a board member , the way attempts came about to throw us out, was a different treatment from other board members. We [at Township Rollers] could not agree on who I wanted to work with as the CEO, I didn’t want interference,” Shah concluded.

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We are victims of racism - Shah, Zakhem