Africa-Press – Lesotho. TheLesotho Football Association (LeFA) is the first sport association to officially express readiness to return to play. To date Lesotho has confirmed 4 cases of covid-19, two of them having recovered.
The body presented its roadmap to the National Emergency Command Centre (NECC) advisory team. The roadmap expands on safecontinuationof football activities under inflexible measures imposed on
sport owing to coronavirus. LeFA halted all national leagues under its auspices in mid-March in line with recommendations from various authorities, despite the country having not confirmed any positive covid-19
case at the time. On 29 May, the 2019/20 season was extendedto 31 July. This was on the grounds that LeFA is “committed to finding ways of resuming the season and ensuring
that all domestic matches are played as soon as it is safe and possible to do so.” as it stands,LeFAintends to resume with the leagues, insisting “this could be the right time to complete the 2019/20 season,
given that Lesotho has not had high volumes of coronavirus infections, compared to other countries.” LeFA Secretary General (SG)MokhosiMohapiconfirmed
toInformative Sport that LeFA has since proposed for ed the necessity for resumption of leagues; particularly the top three leagues namely:Econet Premier League
(EPL),Lesotho Post-Bank League (A Division), and Women’s Super League (WSL).
He however noted thatnegotiations arestill in process,“We have been meeting with NECC’s team responsible for advising the Ministers’ Committee, and they’ve been guiding us on what to include in our
proposal so that it stands a chance of the green light,” Mohapi said. “The negotiations are in full swing right now, and we’re hopeful that we shall be given the go-ahead to proceed and complete
the season on the field of play. Our priority is the top three leagues for now, and we’ll let the nation know once we have something tangible.” Deputy Head of Communication Cluster of NECC MoroaMopeli
saysthe advisory team is yet to critically study LeFA’s proposal whereinanother round of discussions should be expected if there are modifications deemed
necessary. “The advisory team is currently studying the document from LeFA; afterwards, there shall be further discussions on their protocol which must highlight precautionary measures in place to safely resume
with football activities,” Mopeli said. “They’d need to convince the advisory team that they’re ready to return to action without further spreading the virus
infection.” Lesotho Sport and Recreation Commission (LSRC) acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO)Teboho Malataliana indicated that LSRC was part of the first meeting, while LeFA was the only sport association on board,
expressing readiness to resume. All sports associations shall receive forms to fill-in to show their level of readiness to return to action. Malatalianaexplained that, “it should be noted
that the time to inform all other associations to be present at the (first) meeting was very limited since it was short notice; however, starting this
week, we’ll be sending forms for our associations to fill in so that it is clear how ready they are to resume. Our associations will be informed about our
next meeting with the NECC as LSRC with all its associations.” Malatalianaalso clarifies that while the NECC is open for all to express readiness and preparedness to resume, LSRC shall
endorse such proposals beforetheir implementation. “While doors are open for everyone at NECC, our associations need to be careful in terms of what resources and budget would be
needed for the implementation of their proposed safety measures for their activities to resume,” he added. “While it’s our wish to see all sporting activities back in action, it’s vital to ensure that we return when it’s safe to do so, with comprehensive protocol in place.”
