Obrein Simasiku
Omuthiya-Dusty and pot-holed sports fields will now become a thing of the past for residents of Omuthiya as they on Sunday welcomed a newly completed modern ground worth N$8 million, fitted with an artificial turf.
The sports field has been widely well received by the town’s community as Omuthiya has over the years been marred with lack of recreational activities.
This was evident when the Town Council opened it to the public, who took the opportunity to have a closer inspection of the new artificial turf and the whole field itself.
To show how excited the community was, without wasting time they formed football teams to compete among themselves. Many netted goals including the town’s Chief Executive Officer, Samuel Mbango who opened the scoreline in the first-ever match on the pitch.
The field is phase one of the project and once completed into a fully-fledged stadium, it will be able to accommodate about 40,000. It was financed through a donation from the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), and the rest now lies with council to complete the remaining phase.
According to Mbango, the fencing of the area will begin in March to curb vandalism, henceforth one will need to pay a fee in order to utilise the facility. The construction, which lasted for five months, started in September last year.
“We will now organise and form teams, so that we can initiate a league, because we cannot let such a magnificent facility go under utilised. Furthermore, we received maintenance equipment and additional turf patches to fill or repair when it is damaged. Council employees have been trained on how to maintain the facility and use the equipment,” said Mbango.
“The call now is for stakeholders to join hands in order to develop the stadium, as you can see a lot still needs to be done. A proper pavilion fitted with changing rooms and an ablution facility is needed, and it is likely to cost N$10 million,” he said.
Mbango further highlighted that, “a comprehensive draft is projected at N$65 million, and this will be on the standard of the Independence Stadium. It will be having three floors, which include a VIP section on second and third floor with a lounge and camera room.”
For now, he said they will prioritise the provision of basic amenities, while floodlights will be catered for in 2019.