Precious funds from the Dawid-Kruiper local municipality (Upington, Mier, Louisvale) which had to be used for road maintenance, will now be used for a football stadium.
“During a special council meeting today, it was proposed that an amount of R6.2 million be used for the repair and upgrade of the Mxolisi Dicky Jacobs stadium in Upington,” says Hennie Roux, FF Plus councilor in the municipality. “This money has been budgeted for the purchase of water trucks and equipment for road rehabilitation.”
During a previous meeting this week, all parties did agree that the Mxolisi Dicky Jacobs Stadium be upgraded.
“However, this was not on the assumption that funds would be used for important maintenance work. Opposition councilors therefore requested today that private funds should be found rather than using municipal money. The FF Plus voted against the proposal, but the ANC used its majority to push it through.”
Roux says the request to renovate the stadium came from the Upington City football team who were recently promoted to the first league. The club wants to use the stadium as a base.
According to the Premier Soccer League, renovation work of around R7.5 million is needed to make the stadium meet its minimum requirements.
“The stadium has fallen into a terrible state under the mismanagement of the ANC municipality and it is being further vandalized daily. The FF Plus sees the need to repair the stadium, but maintains that the funds cannot come from the current budget, which is intended for service delivery.”
Roux says that the ANC-controlled Dawid Kruiper municipality struggles on a daily basis to deliver only the necessary services to the communities. “Dawid Kruiper deserves better than the ANC.”
