Cameroon: The Olembe Stadium in Yaounde will also organise marriage ceremonies and can be booked for other events. ‘ONIES’, the institution in charge of sports infrastructure and equipment in Cameroon, has officially confirmed this.
While announcing the same, the officials of ONIES said, “Just like other great arenas in the World like Camp Nou in Barcelona, Amsterdam Arena in the Netherlands, London Stadium in England, and Stade de France, Olembe Stadium also welcomed socio-cultural events under adequate conditions.”
Considering the confirmation, ONIES also said that the construction work to complete the edifice will continue.
As soon as, the announcement was made, Cameroonians felt the pain and has shown their rage. The citizens are furious after seeing their $187 million worth prestigious Olembe Stadium being used to organise a wedding.
Following the information, anonymous person said, “I did wanna my own to say no, why couple will go and use 60,000 capacity stadium to organize wedding? Some people like for memba sotey.”
The stadium was built in year 2021-22 and since then it hosted the finals of AFCON 2021 in Yaounde, Cameroon.
Paul Biya Omnisports Stadium which is commonly known as Olembe Stadium and Sport Complex, is a multi-purpose stadium. It is the largest stadium in Cameroon by capacity that can hold 60,000 spectators and is the ninth largest stadium in Africa.
Moreover, the stadium is also a part of a complex that includes two stadia grounds and a gymnasium with handball, basketball, volleyball and tennis courts. The arena also includes an Olympic-size swimming pool, a shopping mall, a museum and cinema and a five-star hotel with 70 rooms available.
These are the reasons the ONIES officials decided to free the stadium and allow it to arrange ceremonies such as marriages and other events or activities.
Many Cameroonians are raising their voice against the decisions and some are mocking it.
A social media user Mr Ndze commented hilariously, “We should use part of the stadium to also cultivate Pepper since it appears there’s no hope.”
Another user named Loveline M Chiaga wrote, “Such activities are already happening in the Molyko Stadium, Buea. I’m unsure why many people are alarmed by the situation in Olembe. What else do they want to do with the various stadiums? Sit and wait for another international tournament? When will that take place? It’s better to transform the stadiums into income-generating avenues, which will guarantee the cost of maintenance.”