Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
KEY stakeholders in the game of football in Manicaland have challenged Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) to up its community social responsibility drive by constructing a state-of-the-art stadium which will serve as its undying legacy should the precious gems become extinct.
At a time when progressive individuals like Walter Magaya are investing in football stadia, ZCDC is commendably sponsoring a football team in the Premiership – Manica Diamonds FC – which relies on the City of Mutare owned Sakubva Stadium as its home ground.
Barely a year after unveiling his state-of-the-art stadium in Harare, named The Heart, Magaya has revealed plans to construct a bigger and better stadium in Kwekwe.
The Yadah FC owner unveiled a major development project to build a 10 000-seater stadium, Chahwanda Stadium, in Kwekwe, aimed at hosting, both local and international football matches.
The ambitious venture is in collaboration with Magaya’s business partner, Shepherd Chahwanda, the owner of Hardrock FC, currently competing in ZIFA Midlands Division 2B.
The Chahwanda Stadium Project is set to be completed by January 15, 2025.
As this progressive initiative unfolds, corporates such as ZCDC have been found wanting when it comes to lasting CRS initiatives, with respect to sporting facilities.
While the company did well to move from sponsoring a once-off national football tournament to finance a football club in the eastern border province, over the years, calls for the company to construct a stadium have been too loud to ignore.
Mutare-born South Africa-based construction entrepreneur, James Lunga Meya, widely known as Hwetu in local football circles, poured his heart out, calling on ZCDC to seriously consider the constructing of a stadium in Manicaland.
Hwetu, who has helped a number of Mutare football players on individual career needs, said diamonds will not last forever, and there is need to have amenities to show for the precious mineral after its depletion.
Donald Manhende
“It is a pity that we have individuals like Walter Magaya who are developing stadiums, and yet there are corporates that are doing nothing to this end. A company like ZCDC is expected to construct something that will live long after the diamonds are exhausted. Diamonds, just like any other non-renewable resources, will not last forever.
“This is something that I feel the company must consider seriously if they really expect the public to take their CRS initiatives seriously,” said Meya.
He also called on other avenues aimed at constructing a state-of-the-art sports facility in Manicaland to be pursued.
“One of the viable solutions to this predicament could be the Built Operate and Transfer (BOT) mechanism. This can be pursued by the local authority, but it has to be done in a way that is attractive to the investors in terms of timeframes of the lease. Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) can also come in handy.
“Sakubva Stadium is not in the state that we would have wanted it to be in this day and age. There are a number of things that need attention at Sakubva Stadium. Here in South Africa, schools are constructing stadiums, and yet we have whole listed corporates that are sponsoring premiership teams, and do not see the need to construct stadiums,” he said.
Fellow football enthusiast, Donald ‘Azzurri’ Manhende said engagement between the local authority and ZCDC has to take place with the aim of giving the diamond miners a piece of land to construct the sporting facility.
“They (ZCDC) should indeed acquire a piece of land and construct a stadium. That will benefit Manicaland and Zimbabwe at large. That is real corporate social responsibility, and it matters most to the community,” he said.
Mutare-based soccer fan, Munyaradzi Zinomwe, said: “It will be a very noble idea to have ZCDC construct a stadium. Surely, with the stadium crisis in our country right now, where our beloved Warriors are being forced to host matches in neighbouring countries like South Africa and Botswana, corporates like ZCDC could come in handy to assist with meaningful social responsibility, while ploughing back to the community.
“It pains us as football fanatics that we have vast resources, but can hardly have facilities constructed from the same resources. The world over, facilities in cities are constructed using resources that are in those particular locations, why are we an exception?”
Repeated efforts to get a comment from ZCDC spokesperson and Manica Diamonds secretary-general, Sugar Chagonda were fruitless at the time of going to print, as he promised to come back to the publication with his response.
