News that the eThekwini municipality has decided to kick 130 year old Berea Rovers Club off their premises in favour of giving the proposed new Liverpool Football Academy a 30 year is very disturbing and disconcerting news. Since 2006 Berea Rovers has been trying to get a long-term lease in place, but the municipality has never acceded to their request, despite being in existence for such a long time. Over and above that, their members have invested upwards of R10 million on the property. Now at the drop of a hat the Durban council has decided that they will just give some outsiders a 30 year lease. Have the eThekwini councillors been bought? This autocratic behaviour without consultation has far-reaching effects and is one of the key reasons football and other sports clubs are crumbling and are not sustainable. There is no core community network where people take pride in the facilities and make investments, for fear that exactly this will happen. With clubs operating on a month-to-month basis with no long term leases at grassroots level our development in any sport, and especially football, will never take root. Yes, we will get an academy, but that academy will only benefit a small minority in the long run, whilst our local ratepayers get a big middle finger from the municipality and a kick up the behind. The people need to wake up, and speak up for their rights.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Oct 2014 16:05:20 +0000