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Lovemore Dube recently in Nairobi Kenya
I WAS pleasantly surprised with the treatment Zimbabwean journalists received on Saturday and Sunday at Nyayo Stadium in Nairobi, Kenya.It was far from what we are used to here in Zimbabwe. In this country our week’s work in building the hype that draws fans to stadia is forgotten in a flash by a group of people who are not in anyway involved with drawing crowds to the venues.

Having arrived at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport late on Saturday, all we cared for was to meet FC Platinum and work on the preview ahead of our newsrooms’ deadlines. Fearing that Osikwamula or Monyas would swear at us and threaten to beat us up, we found ourselves at the stadium’s main entrance where we had been directed by marshals at one of the gates.

I flashed my Zimbabwean passport and showed the page that confirms that I am a journalist. Wellington Toni produced his accreditation card from the Zimbabwe Media Commission and we were immediately ushered in.

After three checkpoints with no hassle, we joined the Zimbabwe party at the VIP Tribune. What a relief and humane way to deal with the media!

I was left feeling that our clubs really need exposure to such professional treatment of journalists. The people that they employ to man turnstiles and gates have no public relations in most instances and will even harass league sponsors’ representatives including senior club executives with impunity.

Many people partner with the game to make sponsorships possible, among them the media.

Saturday was the date of the African Champions League match between Kenyan league winners Gor Mahia and visiting Cnaps of Madagascar.

On Sunday once again we had easy entry into the stadium taking less than a minute to consult marshals. The role of the media seems to be appreciated and everyone within the stadium was so welcoming that it made our work easier.

FC Platinum beat Sofapaka 2-1 in a match watched by less than 120 people.

We hope in 2015 the media’s running battles at the turnstiles back home will be a thing of the past with those entrusted with manning gates knowing who has what privileges.

The Kenyan experience will be incomplete without mentioning the infamous Nairobi Nights.

On Saturday evening we had a drive around the city’s bars with a Zimbabwean based there, Hebert Sibanda of Zimnyama near Plumtree. Kenyans, it seems, do not go to sleep. They love their night life and booze.

The city is a modern day cosmopolitan able to quench revellers’ tastes in music.

It was surprising to listen to South African Pantsula and Kwaito. Slow Rhumba ballads also dominated most of the night clubs.

On one street there could be as many as 30 drinking places, some so small to accommodate just about 10 people.

The biggest attraction is pay television where English football enjoys a big   following.

On one side of town there are nightclubs partitioned by just thick plastic material.