Govt snubs clubs on stadia
Minister of Youth and Sports Uchizi Mkandawire says Nyasa Big Bullets and Mighty Mukuru Wanderers cannot own the stadia which government is building for them in Blantyre.
The statement comes months after Bullets and Wanderers requested government to consider handing over ownership to them.
The minister said: “They [Bullets and Wanderers] cannot own the facilities because they are being built using public resources. They belong to government.
“So, the facilities belong to government and the two teams will just be using and managing them.
“Once they are ready, we will agree on the terms whether it will be a PPP [public private partnership] or something else. We will come up with an MOU [memorandum of understanding.”
On Friday, Mkandawire was quoted by Zodiak Broadcasting Station as having said that they expect the stadia projects to be completed by the end of this year.
Reacting to the minister’s statement, Wanderers spokesperson Clement Stambuli said it is relieving that government “has finally come up with a stand on the issue”.
He said: “As Wanderers, the most important issue is to have a home ground.
“What will be crucial though is to agree on the terms because it has been proven that government is not a good operator and we have two good examples, Kamuzu Stadium and Bingu National Stadium, which they are struggling to look after.
“These are facilities that could have been well taken care of if they were in the hands of the private sector.”
Stambuli said they will be engaging the minister and the ministry to understand their concept.
On his part, Bullets chief administration officer Albert Chigoga said: “The information given by government is not entirely new to us.
“We believe that the contents of the MOU will provide clear information.”
But last year, the People’s Team asked government to consider handing over the facility to them so that they could complete it, but their chief executive officer Suzgo Nyirenda said they have not received a response yet.
The two projects have not been funded since 2020, resulting in the stalling of the works, fuelling speculation that government had abandoned them.
But in December last year, former minister of youth and sports Richard Chimmwendo Banda said the projects were shelved because priority was the construction of the Griffin Saenda Indoor Sports Complex and the Aquatic Centre in Lilongwe for the hosting of the Africa Union Sports Council Region 5 Youth Games last year.
Government, through immediate past president Peter Mutharika pledged to construct the two stadia for the domestic football powerhouses during the 2019 Tripartite Elections campaign period.
He said: “I love Nyasa Big Bullets and Wanderers. But the two clubs do not have stadiums.
“I am, therefore, asking the Malawi National Council of Sports, Blantyre City Council and Ministry Labour, Youth and Manpower Development to strategise on implementing the stadium projects.”
Bullets stadium, which was estimated to cost K3.8 billion, is located in Zingwangwa Township near Moneymen Sports Club along Chikwawa Road and was awarded to China Civil Engineering while the Nomads stadium, which was pegged at K3.6 billion and was awarded to Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Company, is located in Soche near Blantyre Teachers College. For decades the two giants have been using Kamuzu Stadium as their home ground.
