Maritzburg United Football Club nets R27m Msunduzi Municipality deal in spite of objections

THE Msunduzi Municipality will provide financial support to Maritzburg United Football Club, to the tune of millions of rand – despite its own finances being in tatters.

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Published Aug 26, 2021

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DURBAN - THE Msunduzi Municipality will provide financial support to Maritzburg United Football Club, to the tune of millions of rand – despite its own finances being in tatters.

The financial sponsorship will cost the city a minimum of R27 million over the next three years – at R9m a year. However, this is less than the R15m per year that the club had requested.

On Wednesday, The Mercury reported that the Msunduzi Association of Residents, Ratepayers and Civics (MARRC) had written to the municipality to voice its disapproval of the deal.

The association argued in the letter that the municipality, which is under administration, had more pressing matters, like repairing the multitude of water leaks, electrical substations, potholes, and upgrading infrastructure in the city.

Yesterday, when the matter came before full council, councillors across party lines were divided on the request but it was approved.

The DA, with support from other parties, charged that the city was staring into a financial abyss and that it would be insensitive to spend millions on a football club while the municipality was struggling to provide water.

But the ANC, and other parties, said Pietermaritzburg could not afford to lose the club – as it was the only source of sport and entertainment in the city. The report on the matter requested that approval be granted for the renewal of the contract between the municipality and the Maritzburg United Football Club for a further three years – commencing in 2021/22.

The city has provided financial support to the club in previous seasons. The report also said that “the amount for maintenance of the Harry Gwala Stadium, on an annual basis, must be included in the final signed sponsorship agreement”.

DA councillor Sibongiseni Majola said that a few years ago the municipality had been able to support the club, but its financial situation had changed.

“We supported the club when we had R1 billion in reserves, as opposed to now that we are under administration and have no cash. It is not the right time to finance this request,” he said. Councillor Salim Goge, of Al Jama, said while he liked to see the club playing in the top football league, the municipality was not in a position to support it financially. He said the city could not justify spending R27m on soccer while residents struggled to access water.

“Once the situation has settled (finances improved) we can look at the issue again, but not now,” said Goge.

But ANC councillor Mehmood Omar said it was the council’s job to preserve sport in the city by supporting the club.

He said there were major business spin-offs that were derived from having the club in the city, and that municipalities like Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) and Nelspruit were paying much more to support the clubs in their cities.

These sentiments were echoed by ANC councillor Jabu Ngubo, who said that even if the council amended the proposal and paid what it could, that was better than losing the club. AIC councillor Nomalady Dlela also pleaded for the council to support the club.

ACDP councillor Rienus Niemand said supporting the club would show a lack of understanding of the situation facing the municipality. “The priority is to save the city. We are under administration, we have little cash coverage – we are owed R5bn for services.”

MARRC chairperson Anthony Waldhausen yesterday said the organisation was extremely disappointed by the decision to approve the sponsorship, and that the municipality had seemingly ignored the letter it had written.

He said the organisation would meet today to chart the way forward, which would include seeking legal advice on whether it could overturn the decision.

“We will also expose the councillors who voted for this, we will conduct voter education to encourage people to vote with their heads and not with their hearts. We will expose these councillors who did not think about the residents while voting for this,” he said.

When called yesterday, Farook Kadodia, the chairperson of Maritzburg United, said he could not speak as they were playing a match.

Local government expert Lionel Pienaar said the council was faced with a difficult balancing act.

“They have to take cognisance of the prevailing conditions (faced by the city), but they also have to act to protect the local economy. If you look at the games that are played at the Harry Gwala stadium, they contribute to the local economy and have a positive impact on it,” he said. He said the city had a choice to let the club go or keep it and support it.

THE MERCURY

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