Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume faces pushback from local officials who hate his plan to let the Scottland Football Club fix up Rufaro Stadium. The city council met Tuesday, and members asked why anyone should trust this club again. They already gave Scottland FC a field in Mabvuku that sits unfinished today. Nobody can play league games there because the club never completed the promised repairs.
Mafume tried selling the idea by saying that Scottland FC will upgrade Rufaro to meet world-class standards before December. The club belongs to ZANU PF lawmaker Pedzai Sakupwanya, known as "Scott" around town. The mayor promised other teams would still play at Rufaro without paying more money. He dismissed rumors about price hikes as false information.
Council members questioned why Scottland FC received special treatment above other interested parties. Denford Ngadziore from Ward 16 made his position clear. He said the club totally failed with the smaller Mabvuku project, making them unfit for a bigger task at Rufaro. Another official, Costa Mhande, suggested sending Scottland FC elsewhere.
Mhande thinks the club should work on truly run-down places like Dzivarasekwa or Gwanzura instead. He wants the city to create specific standards for Rufaro and publicly advertise for partners. "Why do they want this almost-finished facility?" he asked during the meeting. The situation reminds many people of 2022, when Mafume rejected a similar offer from Sakunda Holdings.
Mafume tried selling the idea by saying that Scottland FC will upgrade Rufaro to meet world-class standards before December. The club belongs to ZANU PF lawmaker Pedzai Sakupwanya, known as "Scott" around town. The mayor promised other teams would still play at Rufaro without paying more money. He dismissed rumors about price hikes as false information.
Council members questioned why Scottland FC received special treatment above other interested parties. Denford Ngadziore from Ward 16 made his position clear. He said the club totally failed with the smaller Mabvuku project, making them unfit for a bigger task at Rufaro. Another official, Costa Mhande, suggested sending Scottland FC elsewhere.
Mhande thinks the club should work on truly run-down places like Dzivarasekwa or Gwanzura instead. He wants the city to create specific standards for Rufaro and publicly advertise for partners. "Why do they want this almost-finished facility?" he asked during the meeting. The situation reminds many people of 2022, when Mafume rejected a similar offer from Sakunda Holdings.
