This development at the time was music to the ears of every football loving person in the Greater Banjul and perhaps beyond.
On the contrary though, works which began in October 2020 and was supposed to last for three to four month, have suffered significant delays leading to no proper football being played across these parks since 2020 as local footballers and fans have been deprived off the much craved Nawetan and Super Nawetan for two years and counting.
According to a publication on the GFF Website in October 2020, “three consulting firms in their respective domains would rehabilitate existing facilities at Banjul, Sere Kunda East, Sere Kunda West, Brikama, Bakau and Manjai mini stadiums where the playing grounds, dressing rooms, toilets, perimeter fence and the artificial playing turfs would be rehabilitated to standards and thus give the grounds a new facelift”.
Even so, as of September 2021, the current state of these parks is in stark contrast to what the GFF projected in 2020. In fact no significant work has taken place in any of these parks.
For instance at Serrekunda East, the pitch that was bulldozed a year ago, has been left in limbo and now has animals happily grazing on it, thus Serrekunda East Sports Development Organisation (SESDO) earlier in the week issued a statement to cancel this year’s nawetan and other zones are likely to follow suit due to the unavailability of playing grounds.
The GFF Second Vice President, Head of Competition and Coordinator of The Stadium Upgrading Project Ebou Faye, in a recent interview with a local medium, admitted that project was a ‘complete’ failure by GFF:
“I think the mistake we made was by going ahead to pre-finance the project for the rehabilitation of these parks even before the receiving of our FIFA Funds for the project”.
He further disclosed that, they had some setbacks in FIFA releasing the funds which he said may be due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Faye, however, remains optimistic that the Box Bar in Brikama and KG5 in Banjul could be used for the new season.
For his part, President of Manjai Sports Committee, Gibril Njie in a recent interview with Afri Radio Sports, said they have been left with frustration:
“It’s disheartening and a gross dismay that for the second year running, we cannot play our nawetan due to this unfinished work at our park”.
Asked to whether GFF gave them any explanation as to why work has stopped at the park, Njie further stated: “As we speak, nobody from the Federation is talking to us, and that should not have happened”
“This is very disheartening, the place is like a ghost town now,” Njie lamented.
There is growing pessimism that GFF might not be in a sound financial situation to restart work at these parks anytime soon and for that, there is fat in fire already.
