JOHO REFUSES RUTO’S DEVELOPMENT IN MOMBASA

Mombasa county government and Nyali MP Mohamed Ali have locked horns in a supremacy battle over redevelopment of Freetown Primary School playground, in Nyali.

The stalemate over who should redevelop the playground escalated on Thursday, May 27 when a group of youth manning the contested ground almost disrupted a media briefing convened by Nyali MP to address the plight of Freetown Football Club and the school children who use the pitch for games.

On Wednesday, May 26, some of the youth who are allegedly hired by Mombasa county government blocked learners of Freetown school from accessing the pitch, during break time.

Ali claims that efforts to block his development projects were evident when the Mombasa county government inspectorate stopped an approved renovation work of the school’s wall and playground at a cost of Ksh7 million.

“We have allocated ksh7 million to rebuild this football pitch and put a perimeter wall around the school, but the county administration has blocked us,” Ali said.

Wilson Ochieng , the deputy chairman of the Freetown School Board of Management stated that the learners have nowhere to play following the stalemate.

“As a board, we are simply requesting to have the ground reconstructed because since the work was stopped our pupils have had nowhere to play. They are even at a security risk from drug users who have inhabited the school grounds. That’s why we asked the Nyali Mp to put up a wall for us,” Ochieng said.

According to Ali, Mombasa county did not allocate any money for the reconstruction of the field in the 2020-2021 financial year budget.

“How on earth can someone stop a development project because of playing politics?” Posed Ali who accused Mombasa governor Hassan Joho and Coast regional coordinator John Elungata for the woes.

According to Freetown FC treasurer John Wanje, the club has now been forced to look for other places to play their matches.

The club has since pulled out of Football Kenya Federation provisional league.

Ali says all the frustrations mated upon him by the local administration is because of his close relationship with Deputy President William Ruto.

By People Daily