Government to reopen Kamuzu Stadium

Malawi Government on Wednesday announced that, funds permitting, Kamuzu Stadium will be reopened temporarily in two to four weeks’ time.

The development follows a meeting which Youth and Sports Minister Enoch Chihana had with concerned supporters and club representatives.

The meeting was held at the ailing arena and the minister, who all along insisted that he would not relent on the issue, changed his tune and assured the turnout that the stadium would be reopened in the next four weeks.

Government ordered the closure of the stadium as a safety measure last month after it was established that some of the stands had developed serious cracks.

Jubilation was the prevalent emotion among the fans the moment Chihana made the announcement at the VIP enclosure where the one-hour meeting took place.

“I have heard your concerns and I am giving my officials, in particular the PS [principal secretary II, Mr. Justin Saidi], two to four weeks to cordon off the affected areas and see if it is possible that Super League matches should be played here,” said the minister.

He, however, told the turnout that the process of cordoning off the affected stands will depend on funding.

“I should state clearly here that the process might delay due to government bureaucracy. There are procedures that have to be followed to obtain funding for the exercise,” said Chihana.

He also said he made the decision having considered the concerns raised by the stakeholders, in particular concerned supporters.

Chihana appealed to the stakeholders to take collective responsibility in ensuring that the safety of the spectators should be a priority and that the cordoned-off areas should be a ‘no-go zone’.

He also appealed to the teams’ supporters to come up with a joint committee to plan on how they will ensure safety of fans during games.

The concerned supporters’ chairperson Mabvuto Chibambo thanked government for its gesture.

“We would like to thank you for taking our plea into consideration because as we said, clubs and indeed fans were affected by the closure of the stadium. We appreciate your gesture,” Chibambo told Chihana.

Speaking earlier, Mighty Wanderers general secretary David Kanyenda said a couple of years back, the upper stands were also cordoned off, but games were still being played at the stadium.

During the meeting, an engineer from the Government’s Building Department, who refused to identify himself, gave a report on the cracks.

He said apart from the stand that was built during Bakili Muluzi’s government, all the other stands are in bad state.

“The stands are held by concrete and steel, but then the concrete has outlived its usefulness and it is in urgent need of attention. So, continued use of the stands would be a recipe for disaster,” said the engineer.     

Apart from the supporters, other attendees included Mighty Wanderers and Escom United chairpersons George Chamangwana and Fanuel Nkhono respectively, Nomads GS Kanyenda and his Bullets counterpart Higger Mkandawire. Sulom executive committee members Willie Phalula and Gift Mkandawire and Southern Region Football League (SRFL) chairperson Trouble Kalua, also attended the meeting.