WAR seems to have emerged over ownership of Matero Stadium in Lusaka after the Lusuka City Council revoked the lease from Lusaka Mayor Miles Sampa.
This move saw potential developers applying to lease the stadium and among them is Mwembeshi ward 27 councillor Kelvin Kaunda.
Kaunda says the former Matero lawmaker did not own the stadium but was only a member of the trustees of the Matero Constituency Development Trust by virtue of being the area member of parliament.
“Matero stadium has never belonged to him, he was a member of the Matero Constituency Development Trust by virtue of [being] the area member of parliament and documents are there to show. The constitution is there for that constituency trust and the right person to take up the issues of the stadium is the current member of parliament,” he said.
“The legal documents are there, the Constitution is there and where all the parties signed. Matero Stadium has never been a property of Miles Sampa, the mayor’s claims are unfounded because never at any time did I chair the finance committee which his lawyers are alleging.”
Kaunda added that it was unfortunate that the mayor went on to allege so many things yet he had documentation in his office that he could rely on.
“The Lusaka City Council meetings are public, actually the meeting which terminated the contract between Lusaka City Council and Matero Development Committee was chaired by himself (Miles Sampa) and records are there at LCC for anyone to read, so it is unfortunate that the mayor can go out to allege so many things and yet he has documents in his office that he can look at and validate his claims,” he said.
Sampa through his lawyers on Wednesday threatened to take legal action against the LCC for revoking the lease agreement in a meeting he chaired.
According to the lease agreement, in section D, Sampa agreed to rehabilitate the premises as soon as practicable, as a football stadium with proper playing surface with other requisites of the first class Stadium and during the said term to keep down the herbage by means of mowers and to keep the playing surface in proper order and condition for good play which is not the case the since 2016.