The Director-General of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Prof. Peter Twumasi, has defended the decision to suspend football activities at state-owned stadiums for other non-sporting events, stating that it is a common practice and helps generate revenue for the authority.
In December, Prof. Twumasi faced criticism for suspending football activities at the Accra Sports Stadium to rent out the venue to musicians for musical concerts.
However, he has now clarified that the decision was made to ensure the authority can continue to maintain and upgrade the facilities.
According to Prof. Twumasi, the authority makes a profit from hosting non-sporting events, and some of the revenue generated goes towards restoring any damage caused to the pitch.
He emphasised that the practice of hosting non-sporting events at state-owned stadiums is not new and has been happening regularly.
"The calculations that we have done with the various events which have a certain component which we call the pitch insurance cover is able to restore. I think
if you remember, before we shifted our sporting activities to other stadia we had made mention of this to all stakeholders that in December, it will be used for other events that are not sporting. And the revenue for it should be able to recover entirely everything,” Prof. Peter Twumasi said.
Prof. Twumasi further explained that the NSA carries out thorough inspections to ensure that the pitch is restored to its original condition after each event. He stated that an inspection team was sent to check the pitch on January 9, and it was confirmed that the restoration process was complete.
While some critics have argued that the suspension of football activities at state-owned stadiums could negatively impact the development of sports in Ghana, Prof. Twumasi believes that the decision is necessary to ensure the sustainability of the facilities.
He maintained that the NSA's primary goal is to promote sports development in the country, and it will continue to work towards achieving this objective while also generating revenue through non-sporting events.
Source: Ghanasoccernet.com
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