The football fraternity will wait a little longer to use Kamuzu Stadium for football activities as the facility is currently hosting victims of xenophobic attacks from South Africa.
The facility was banned from hosting elite matches after it failed to meet minimum requirements due to its poor state.
This led to the postponement of the initial FDH Bank Premiership launch match between Mighty Wanderers and Karonga United following the impasse between Football Association of Malawi (Fam) and Super League of Malawi (Sulom) on the condition of the facility.
The ministry finalised works at the facility two weeks ago but Fam is yet to inspect.
In an interview Friday, Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture spokesperson Macmillan Mwale said he was not sure when the facility would be opened for assessment from Fam.
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“I cannot give you a timeline on when we will invite Fam for inspection because the facility is hosting victims of xenophobic attacks from South Africa. We finalised works on the facility three weeks ago but priority is on the victims of xenophobic attacks at the moment.
“We are expecting to host over 600 people who are fleeing xenophobic attacks in South Africa. We do not know when the process will be finalized,” Mwale said.
Fam’s First Instance Body (FIB) banned the facility from hosting elite matches after several concerns including poor sanitation facilities and substandard and damaged technical benches.
The association also demanded a structural assessment on the facility after a similar inspection was conducted 11 years ago by the Confederation of African Football (Caf) experts.
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Fam Operations Director Gomezgani Zakazaka was not readily available for his comment yesterday.
The closure of the stadium has forced Blantyre-based teams Wanderers, FCB Nyasa Big Bullets and Ekhaya to play their home matches away from home.
The Blantyre derby was played at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe last week.
Wanderers have chosen Mpira Stadium as their home ground whereas Bullets are using Joyce Chitsulo Stadium in Mwanza District.
Bullets Chief Executive Officer Albert Chigoga was yet to respond to our questionnaire as we went to press.
Last month, Fam report highlighted five areas which needed urgent attention at the facility.
They included blocked toilets in the VIP section, broken toilets in the dressing rooms and damaged technical benches.
The report said the shortcomings posed a great threat to safety, hygiene and match operations.
During a press conference at Mpira Village in Chiwembe Township last month, Fam President Fleetwood Haiya said the decision to ban the facility was made in the best interests of the football stakeholders such as sponsors and fans.
“This is in the best interests of the sponsors, fans, clubs and government,” he said.
Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Alfred Gangata also visited the facility to appreciate its status.
Caf experts banned the facility from hosting international matches as it was declared unfit in 2012
