NSA boss responds to Cape Coast Stadium ban
The Director General of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Prof. Peter Twumasi has revealed that neither his organisation nor the Ministry of Youth and Sports has received official notification from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) regarding the reported directive for the renovation of the Cape Coast Stadium.
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He expressed surprise at the media reports of the purported ban on the stadium from hosting international matches due to defects identified during a CAF inspection, the NSA boss expressed astonishment, emphasising that his organisation had not been formally informed of any such concerns from CAF officials.
The NSA boss further questioned the timing of the alleged ban, emphasising that the Cape Coast Stadium, along with the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi, had been certified by CAF in June after a similar inspection exercise.
"We have not received any letter for inspection of the Cape Coast Stadium nor have we received a letter from CAF saying the stadium is in bad shape. If CAF was coming here for an inspection, they would have written to us or the ministry, but none of us was written to in this case," Prof. Twumasi stated in an interview with the Daily Graphic.
“How can a stadium that was certified in June be declared unfit in October? Nobody has received a letter inviting CAF to come and do an inspection, as well as the purported closure,” Prof. Twumasi queried in an interview with the Daily Graphic.
Agreement
Responding to reports that the ban on the facility had compelled Medeama SC to use the Baba Yara Stadium as an alternative venue for the CAF Champions League due to the reported defects, Prof. Twumasi revealed that there was no formal agreement between Medeama and the NSA for the use of the Cape Coast Stadium.
He insisted that clubs using NSA-managed facilities had formal contracts and Medeama needed to adhere to the established procedures to access the Baba Yara Stadium for their upcoming Champions League group matches against CR Belouizdad of Algeria on December 1, Young Africans of Tanzania (December 8) and Egyptian giants Al Ahly on February 24, 2024.
“As we speak, they don’t have any contract with the NSA to use either the Cape Coast, Baba Yara or the Accra Sports Stadium. All the clubs that are using our facilities have signed contracts with us so Medeama can only get access if they come to sign a contract with the NSA,” he said.
“We serve 54 sports disciplines so at every point, some other disciplines are also using the facilities so when you want to use it, you make a request from the National Sports Authority and the kind of preparation that you request will be done for you,” he further explained.
Essipon Stadium
Prof. Twumasi provided a situational report regarding the state of the Essipon Stadium which had been closed down for over two years for extensive rehabilitation. He explained that the prefabricated stadium had suffered significant corrosion due to its proximity to the sea, necessitating the removal and replacement of corroded metals by the contractor.
The second phase of renovation involved roofing the facility, which the contractor was set to undertake after securing the necessary materials.