The tweet by Minister of Youth, Sport, Arts and Recreation, Kirsty Coventry over the impending ownership transfer of the National Sports Stadium from the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing to her ministry has been meet with mixed feelings with others highlighting it a scapegoat for the incompetent government.
CAF recently banned the Zimbabwe national senior men football team from hosting international matches in local stadia due to poor standards and the government is working flat out to rectify the problem.
Whilst many are not rallying behind the National Sports Stadium ownership transfer, the move can be a game changer as the Ministry of Local Government seems to be resting on its laurels as the local authority Harare City Council tasked to maintain the stadia is neglecting the stadia around the country maybe due to the revenues being generated.
Kirsty Coventry Tuesday took to twitter to portray the developments on the issue of the stadia ban and how ZIFA has to secure a venue for the Warriors’ Afcon qualifier against Algeria scheduled for March 29.
“ZIFA have failed to assure CAF that the work we are doing in the stadiums will safeguard our National Teams playing home games in Zimbabwe. ZIFA now have to come up with a stadium for our teams to play home games outside of Zimbabwe”, she tweeted.
She then revealed the need for her Ministry to own the National Sports Stadium so that they should be smooth flow of sporting activities.
“Good news: It has been agreed that ownership + operations of the National Sports Stadium in Zimbabwe will be transferred to Ministry of Youth, Sport, Art and Recreation. We have the experience + passion to use this opportunity for Zimbabwe to become a sporting powerhouse”, she tweeted.
Many sport fans didnot welcome the idea which they believe without financial muscles , Kirsty’s ministry may also lead the stadia into oblivion.
Nkosivumile Ncube on Facebook queried the motive behind change of ownership “But who was owning the Stadium? Is it not a question of removing money from one pocket to another pocket of the same trousers?”, he said.
Mlondolozi Ndlovu seemed exasperated when commenting on the issue on Facebook ” Nothing good as long as it’s the same incompetent government”. Ndlovu commented on a Facebook post about the developments from the minister’s official twitter handle account.
Others received this a good news as they perceived the Ministry of Sports as a new broom.TL Ndewere had this to say on face book ” Lesson learnt l think. More investment needed in our infrastructure towards maintenance as well as upgrading it”.
Before the ban by CAF, the stadia around the country had been left delapidating by the Harare City Council with Gwanzura Stadium starving the Highfield community of premier football for more than 4 years.
At the moment the country is upgrading the stadia but it looks like the match between Algeria will be played home way from home.
Reports are confirming that the match between the Warriors and the Desert Foxes will be played at Orlando Stadium in Soweto, South Africa.
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