Stadium a drug den
Evidence of a drug den in the bathrooms at Mashakeng Stadium is only one of the factors urging serious intervention.
The stadium is in a state of disrepair and neglect. Vandals have stolen the fences around the tennis court and everything else they could remove.
John Nyundu, the CEO of the Nsizwa Nyundu Foundation, wants to promote sports, arts, culture and recreation in the township.
“Let us celebrate Freedom Day discussing the development of the youth. It won’t help us to discuss how much money has gone into fixing the stadium in the past. We need to move forward,” he said.
Pack Nyalungu, a concerned resident, and he invited all interested parties, team owners and members of teams to a brainstorming session to discuss the Cleaning Campaign and Sports Development Programmes. The meeting will be held at Mashishing Recreational Facility on Tuesday April 27 at 12:00. This committee will then engage with the municipality about the management of the stadium and the development of a plan.
“We have observed the social challenges faced by the young people in our area. The current condition of Mashishing (Mashakeng) Stadium calls for action to be taken by the residents, by rolling up their sleeves and joining hands in cleaning and taking care of the stadium that has now turned out to be a haven for criminal activities.
“This facility is a place that has the potential to develop future sports and athletes in our community, but due to neglect has been left to be vandalised. Electricity cables have been stripped off, bathrooms damaged and fences stolen after millions of rand were spent by both the municipality and Glencore Mine in two separate years,” said Nyundu. Nyalungu told Steelburger/Lydenburg News that several concerned people are going to work with the Nsizwa Nyundu Foundation to source support from local businesses to clean the stadium and implement programmes. This is aimed at helping the youth move away from the streets and protecting them from drug and alcohol abuse.
“We aim to revive all sporting codes: soccer, netball, basketball, tennis, volleyball, hockey, cricket, softball, boxing and so forth. We have also noted that vehicle spinning is one of the new sports followed by many people, therefore, we also want to demarcate an area in the stadium yard to be converted into a spinning area,” said Nyundu. For more information, contact Nyundu on 072-568-2342 or Nyalungu at 078-535-7174.
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