NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 30 – As exclusively revealed by Capital FM Sports in May, the national government will take over the refurbishment of the City Stadium with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) set to be signed between Sports Kenya and the Nairobi County Government.
In May, Sports Principal Secretary Joe Okudo revealed that the government had already sent engineers from the Ministry of Works to the county facility to assess it and draw a plan to start its renovations.
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And on Wednesday, PS Okudo accompanied Governor Mike Mbuvi Sonko, Chief Administrative Secretary Noor Hassan and Sports Kenya boss Fred Muteti, flanked by other sports officials in touring the stadium and planning on the next stop for refurbishment.
“We have been directed by the Ministry and the Government to draw an MoU with the County Government. My CEO will have a meeting with the County Executive Committee Member and draw the MoU which will be confirmed by the Attorney General’s Office and after that we will have a meeting with Public Works to give instructions on how we move forward,” Sports Kenya boss Muteti said as they toured the facility.
The dilapidated state of the turf and overgrown grass in the terrace sitting areas are the current images of the stadium christened Tok Komwanda and it hasn’t hosted a top flight game for almost five years.
The City Stadium was a favorable home ground for Kenyan Premier League champions Gor Mahia who turned it into a fortress, while many other City clubs preferred it as a home ground due to its proximity to the City Centre.
Also accompanying the entourage on Wednesday were Athletics Kenya president Lt Gen (Rtd) Jackson Tuwei, who is also the chairman of the Sports, Arts and Social Development Fund as well as Shadrack Maluki, the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) senior vice president.
SK Muli, the Chief Architect in the Ministry of Public Works, says they will sit down with the stadium management to draw out a plan for the stadium which might also see the inclusion of an athletics track for the first time.
The same contractors working at the Nyayo National Stadium have also been handed the responsibility of working on City Stadium.
“We have been here before and see that this stadium needs a serious uplift. All we require is a clear brief on what you require to be done and we will get it done. We will look at a wholistic picture on what you want this stadium to be. If finances are an issue we can do it in phases. The stands are inadequate and we may need to do others,” Muli said, speaking to officials from the County.
PS Okudo meanwhile hopes that the process can be completed in the next year.
“We have been talking about renovating City Stadium and I am looking forward to the day when we will sign the MoU and cut the ribbon to officially open it. We are looking at a process of six months to one year because we also don’t want to prolong the wait,” Okudo stated.
Governor Sonko has promised support to the process, saying he will ensure it is completed to the best of the required standards.
The County had already started some rehabilitation with the Main Stand getting a new concrete fit while construction of a new toilet block as well as refurbishment of the dressing rooms had been done.