By Neto Baptiste
St Mary’s South MP Kelvin “Shugy” Simon has once again called on government Senator and candidate in last October’s by-election, Dwayne George, to rectify the issues that have rendered the Bolans playing field unusable for official football and or cricket matches.
The Bolans playing field had been earmarked by the government for development ahead of the recent by-election, but the project remains incomplete with large holes on the northern end of the facility creating what Simon labels a hazardous situation for all involved.
“Since the by-election, nothing. It’s just there laying down and hampering the field, and right now if you go there, it’s just water. The water has nowhere to go because it’s being blocked from where it usually flows to. It’s a hazardous situation over there for us. We are trying to remedy it because we are not waiting on them because we know they are not going to do anything. It was just an election gimmick and the whole world can see that because if they had any real intentions of getting it done then it would be done by now,” he said.
The situation has reportedly had a negative impact on the preparedness of community-based teams while it has also caused both the Bolans Football Club and the Bolans Blasters cricket team to play all away matches in their various competitions.
“It’s not okay for us to have our home games being played at Jennings and I learnt last night that the cricket team and the football team, in order to use the dressing room in Jennings and the bathroom facilities, that we have to pay them. I don’t wrong Jennings for wanting the money because it’s all about the community and the money will go back to the community, but it’s such a shame that we are the biggest community in the south and we can’t play on our field,” the MP said.
Simon believes that because the initiative was rushed in an effort to try and sway voters, it was never properly planned nor was there any dialog with the groups who utilize the facility.
“We were there and we were assessing what we needed to do to get it in order because it’s still a mess and got worse with recent rains that came because it’s waterlogged again in the same area they are trying to put the stand.
“I don’t know who advised them but in my estimation, they need to get an excavator and dig out everything and level back the field because it makes no sense putting a stand where they are trying to put it right now,” he said.
Simon, who is also president of the Bolans Football Club, said the body is currently looking at ways to possibly rectify the issues.