MINISTER of Youth and Sports Development, Barrister Solomon Dalung, has said that the bad state of the mainbowl pitch of the National Stadium, Abuja, is caused by non-budgetary allocation for supply of electricity in the complex in the 2016 Appropriation Act.
The pitch, which used to be lush green, is a far cry from original state despite the fact that about N98 million was spent on its maintenance less than three years ago. The grass has turned brown, especially now that the harmattan is here.
The state of the pitch was a reason the coach of the 2015/2016 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) champions, Enugu Rangers, Imama Amapakabo, claimed caused the failure of his wards to defeat FC IfeanyiUbah in Wednesday’s Super Cup match decided in the stadium.
“This has to do with the challenges we have with budgetary allocation for the management of the stadium in 2016. The inability of our budgetary provision to support the lightning (sic) which is used to pump water and then maintain the pitch led to what it is. It is a very bad thing,” Dalung told sports journalists after the Super Cup game in Abuja.
“These things are maintained with electricity and water. Now, the ministries, parastatals disconnection from PHCN for their inability to pay bills. The Federal secretariat have (sic) been in darkness for a long time. It is the same problem that applies to the stadium here.
“Even the light we are enjoying now is as a result of the understanding we’ve been able to forge with them to supply us power that we will live up to our obligation. But it has nothing to do with the use for religious activities,” he added.
Dalung informed that the use of the facility for religious activities even generated some funds for the National Stadium, but noted that such money was paid into government’s Single Treasury Account, which made it difficult for retrieval of such to be spent on maintenance of the facility.
“Even those that are given the stadium for such activities are usually asked to pay; they are taxed heavily so that in the event of any destruction we must be able to repair it.
“And we’ve been able to even generate much from that. But because of government policy, whatever is generated is paid into coffers and the process of getting it back is through budgetary allocation. So this led us into this state of dilapidation,” he informed.
Dalung also revealed his plan to address the issue.
“But I have just summoned the Director of Stadia Management and I have held discussion with him. So by tomorrow (Thursday) we may be looking out of the box to see how we will get out of the problem. Definitely we are going to have activities here and we need the pitch,” he stated.
Meanwhile, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Sports, Senator Obinna Ogba, however, told sports journalists that the ministry might not be blamed completely.
According to Ogba, President Muhammadu Buhari needed to do something urgently about the TSA issue, informing that he learnt that about N60million was generated by the stadium last year but the ministry could not access the money.
“We may not blame the ministry. Mr President himself needs to do something about it (TSA). When you talk to the ministry, they will tell you that the money they generated, they pay it into the TSA.
“They are owing AEDC thirty something million Naira. I was made to understand that they generated up to N60million just last year which could have taken care of that bill but they can’t access the money,” Ogba lamented.
Discussion about this post