A fresh leadership storm has engulfed supporters of SC Villa, with a faction known as Team Bikolwa publicly rejecting what it describes as an unlawful extension of Hajji Omar Ahmed Mandela’s tenure as fans’ leader.
The dispute, which pits Mandela against his rival Hajji Farouk Meywa, has intensified ahead of planned elections to reorganize the club’s supporters’ leadership structure.
Team Bikolwa — led by Meywa — insists Mandela’s mandate expired and that any claim of an extended term lacks legitimacy.
Addressing journalists at Old Kampala from offices Meywa says were established to serve as official SC Villa supporters’ premises, several members of the faction dismissed reports that Mandela attended and addressed the previous supporters’ summit as a duly recognized leader for an additional two years without re-election.
Meywa criticized what he termed a pattern of unilateral decision-making within the supporters’ ranks.
“It is regrettable that we allowed the matter of Engineer Ben Misagga handing over our team to Lusaka Commodities to pass without resolution,” he said.
“Now, the same approach is being used to transform the supporters’ leadership into what appears to be a personal enterprise. Those who endorsed the extension are largely employees.”
Other supporters echoed his concerns. Sultan Hakim alleged that the extension was orchestrated without the knowledge or consent of the broader fan base.
“We as SC Villa supporters were never consulted, and we do not recognize this extension,” he said.
Hajjat Aisha Nassali went further, questioning the legitimacy of Mandela’s original mandate.
“The term expired. We stepped away. How can it be extended without a fresh mandate? This is turning sports leadership into something resembling political maneuvering,” she remarked.
The controversy comes as the SC Villa Supporters Supreme Council, under the guidance of the club’s Board of Trustees, prepares to outline electoral roadmaps at a meeting scheduled for Sunday, March 1.
However, Mandela’s alleged term extension has cast a shadow over the process, threatening to deepen divisions within one of Uganda’s most storied football fan bases.
