Axim youth demonstrate over locked-up stadium project

Youth in Axim, in the Nzema-East Municipality of the Western Region, have issued a two-week ultimatum to the President to allow the use of a 95% completed stadium that has been abandoned and left to deteriorate.

The stadium promised to the community, has been locked and left unused for years, with its facilities, including VVIP areas and goalposts, falling into disrepair.

Speaking to Channel One News during the demonstration, the Leader of the Axim Youth, Jonas Kwabutey said the Axim Youth have no place to play but the new seats and ceiling installed at the stadium are all rotting away due to the years of abandonment hence gave the President up to 29th July to intervene or face their wrath.

He said they submitted a petition two months ago, which was ignored by the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Eric Essien.

“They promised to construct a multipurpose sports stadium for us. As I’m talking now, if you enter the stadium, you can see that all the things are rotting. They have done the VVIP, they’ve mounted the goalpost, all the necessary facilities, they’ve done it but they’ve locked it and everything is rotting, so we are poised to demonstrate.”

“All we are telling them is this, we submitted our petition, which was two months ago, and the MCE didn’t call us, and he didn’t even show up. We wrote a request for a police escort, but they didn’t even mind us.

“The reason why we are today is we are sending a signal to the government that the stadium, whether commissioned or not commissioned, must use it. And we have given up to 29 July, that’s the ultimatum.”

The MCE, Eric Essien in response to the concerns expressed sadness over the decaying stadium but said he has contacted the Regional Minister to get the Contractor who has abandoned the site over non-payment of work done to return by August.