Chippa staying in Bay after stadium issue resolved

The hatchet has been buried and Chippa United will be staying in Nelson Mandela Bay.

That was the word from Chippa United chair Siviwe Mpengesi and Nelson Mandela

Bay acting mayor Thsonono Buyeye yesterday.

This comes after Mpengesi said late last month that negotiations were taking place to have the Absa Premiership side moved to East London.

He said yesterday that the team would, however, continue to play some of their home games in East London as had happened in past seasons.

“I can confirm we have met with the acting mayor.

“We agreed in principle that we are extending our anchortenant contract for another three years, with a few games being played in East London,” Mpengesi said.

“We are no longer relocating but we will still play at BCM

Stadium. The team will remain in PE, but I think what was important was that the acting mayor was able to resolve the issue of the stadium.

“That was the big problem and the reason why we wanted to leave.

“So that has been resolved and the stadium is now available.

“We will be ready to play our first PSL game in PE.

“So things are back to normal.”

Buyeye said: “I met with

Chippa and SRAC [officials from the sport, recreation, arts and culture department] on Monday and the matter was resolved.”

When Mpengesi announced the intention to move the team, Bay sports and recreation director Charmaine Williams said Chippa would not be able to go anywhere unless they paid back the money they had been sponsored since 2014.

Chippa wanted out of the deal they had with the Bay, claiming the metro had ignored their pleas to secure a compliant venue for the club’s fixtures after the Nelson Mandela

Bay Stadium was offered up as a quarantine site for Covid-19.

The stadium has been closed as a quarantine site since.

The news that Chippa would remain in the Bay came a day after a chaotic Buffalo City council virtual meeting at which councillors were meant to discuss the planned relocation.

The club also had ambitious plans to establish a sports academy in Buffalo City.

But a contentious proposal to lease two stadiums in Buffalo City to Chippa for a meagre R3,000 a month for 20 years had ANC caucus members trading insults in a meeting that lasted more than 12 hours.

Mpengesi lashed out at some of the councillors.

“It was making sense for us to relocate to East London as we are also in the process of taking over management of their two stadiums — Jan Smuts and Buffalo City — which we plan to transform into big sporting facilities,” he said.

“We want to build a worldclass sporting academy there, which will include a school where young boys and girls can learn about sport.

“However, we have been frustrated PR by delays in the approval of such as a result of short-sighted and malicious individuals in council who do not have a vision about the improvement of people’s lives in BCM through sport.”