The Director General of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Peter Twumasi, has defended the decision to lease the Accra Sports Stadium for concerts in December.
This move sparked controversy as sporting activities had been banned at the stadium during the same period.
When he appeared before the Public Account Committee, Ningo Prampram Member of Parliament, Sam George questioned whether the payment of GH¢70,000 received from Stonebwoy’s Burniton group for his BHIM concert was sufficient to cover any damages caused to the stadium.
While evading specifics on the financial aspect, Mr Twumasi said the stadium had been restored to its optimal condition.
“On January 9, the Minister sent an inspection team led by the Chief Director to check if we were able to recover the pitch, and it was fully done; they can attest to that,” he responded.
Sam George further inquired about the absence of pitch covers during the social activities, contrasting it with the standard practice for sports events.
The NSA boss explained that, pitch covers are used during sports events for a limited time, allowing periodic watering.
However, for prolonged social events, constant watering is impractical, and covering the grass for extended hours could lead to heat buildup, potentially causing damage.
“The turf is a natural grass surface so if it’s used for a very limited time, you can use pitch covers in morning and evening you resume watering regime. If the event is taking more period, you can’t water and it will be building heat underneath the covers and it burns even more if not covered. Grass is a sensitive material so it couldn’t have been covered for an event that lasted long” Mr. Twumasi explained.
, Peter Twumasi, has defended the decision to lease the Accra Sports Stadium for concerts.){kind=link}