BB, Nomads plan to lease stadium for 20 years
Nyasa Big Bullets and Be Forward Wanderers have said their joint plan to lease the ailing Kamuzu Stadium from government are at an advanced stage.
The People’s Team chief executive officer (CEO) Fleetwood Haiya said they have held meetings with their Nomads counterparts on their plans to lease the facility for 20 years.
“We are drafting the proposal and once finalised, we will submit to relevant authorities for their perusal,” he said.
Haiya and Nomads general secretary Mike Butao said they will finalise the proposal by the end of this week.
The local football powerhouses also said the proposed lease period will not halt their plans to construct their own stadiums which they will be doing simultaneously.
Said Haiya: “Not at all. Very soon we will be unveiling the NBBFC [Nyasa Big Bullets Football Club] stadium and training ground sites.”
According to the memorandum of understanding (MoU), the club’s new owners—Nyasa manufacturing Company (NMC)—are supposed to acquire a stadium within a five-year period.
On the other hand, the Nomads newly-elected executive committee has also pledged to revive their stadium project plan which flopped two years ago.
During a press conference held last month, Bullets unveiled the joint plan for the proposed stadium lease.
“The idea is that we should be managing the stadium and be responsible for the costs of maintenance and whatever government proposes in terms of lease charges, be it monthly or annually, then we will be paying them. This is part of our plans to run the clubs as commercial entities and we hope government will approve it,” he said then.
Haiya also said apart from hosting matches at the stadium, the two clubs feel they can generate funding through other marketing drives such as advertising billboards.
Butao said if the proposal is approved, it would take away the burden of managing the facility from government.
“You look at the current state of the stadium whereby government is struggling to maintain it, including frequent disconnection of water and electricity, meaning that they are unable to run it profitably and we are saying they should give us a chance and see how it goes,” he said.
However, Ministry of Labour, Youth, Sports and manpower Development director of sports Jameson Ndalama said everything will depend on how the two teams will formulate their proposal.
The stadium, which has been closed for over a year now, is currently undergoing renovations which will include replacing the artificial turf and fortifying the rickety stands.
