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The Sports CS expressed his displeasure at the slow pace of construction work at the facility earmarked to host AFCON 2027
Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba has expressed his displeasure at the slow pace at which the Kipchoge Keino Stadium in Eldoret is being constructed.
Namwamba toured the facility on Tuesday, June 20, and was critical of the contractors for not only doing a shoddy job but also taking longer to complete it.
Kipchoge Keino is one of the three stadiums earmarked to host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations if the EAC Pamoja Bid of Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania is successful, but its completion has taken longer than expected having been commissioned, coincidentally by Namwamba himself, when he was Sports Minister under former President Mwai Kibaki in 2012.
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14:00 - 21.06.2023
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Namwamba sent off the team with words of encouragement and assured them of the government's unwavering support as they embarked on their journey.
“The CS expressed his displeasure at the speed of the construction as well as the quality of work done on the stadium, calling on the contractor to up his game and deliver a quality facility that met the CAF and FIFA standards.
He warned that the government would not tolerate substandard workmanship, putting on notice all stadia contractors engaged in the shoddy development of facilities.
The CS said that his ministry was keen on developing quality stadia that reflected the huge government investment, to aid its bid to host the football showpiece,” read part of a series of tweets from the Sports Ministry’s official Twitter handle.
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The inspection tour saw the CS and the on-site contractor engage in a heated argument over the slow progress of the works with the former accusing the latter of lying to him after he claimed work stalled due to unavailability of funds.
“How come you lie to me, you are doing it here not even on the phone. If I was away, I could have believed what you are saying.
We are here to send a message that there is a new way of doing things. We are hands-on and want value for money plus I will not allow a contractor to lie to my face when we have the whole of Africa possibly coming here for the Africa Cup of Nations.
The length of time it has taken to get this facility to this level is criminal. If you look at the pitch, it is a grazing ground. I launched the work for this tartan track 11 years ago when I was Minister for Sports, it needed to be refreshed over time which has not been done," Namwamba said.
He added that the Ministry was committed to renovating the stadium and they were not going to condone the bad manners.
“Faith Kipyegon who just broke two world records lives here in Eldoret and trains here, we cannot subject her to these kinds of conditions. We want contractors given the responsibility to do this work to really work within that new order. The highest standards and value for money," he said.
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The multi-purpose stadium has a sitting capacity of 10, 000 people and should have an international standard athletic track, new terraces, changing rooms, and a pavilion when completed.
Stadia remains Kenya’s biggest headache even as it bids to host the continental tournament alongside its neighbours as the country lacks a facility that meets CAF’s standards.
Karasani and Nyayo, the other stadiums earmarked to host the tournament, also failed a CAF inspection test two years ago and it remains to be seen if and when the government will facilitate their improvements given no allocation has been made in that respect in the 2023-24 budget.
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