The current state of a section of the roof, taken from inside the building. (Photo: Avenash Ramzan)
By Avenash Ramzan
The dilapidated roof of the Fruta Conquerors club house is set for an upgrade following pledges from the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) and the National Sports Commission (NSC).
The roof is in dire need of repair and it has not escaped the eyes of GFF president Wayne Forde, who is also a former president of the club.
Speaking at the launch of the club’s annual football camp on Thursday (July 13), Forde pledged a significant sum towards repair of the roof.
“We are sitting in front of a club house that is in badly need of repair and Mr. Thomas (Daniel Thomas- Club Secretary) can attest to the amount of work that I did during my tenure here and what he continues to do to get support to repair the roof of this building,” Forde stated.
He continued, “At one point I funded a lot of that repair, but it’s not the best job that could have been done. And the fact that there is such a remarkable job being done to positively influence lives in this community really is an indictment that this club as an institution hasn’t been able to get the roof repaired. So I’m here to make an announcement: the Guyana Football Federation will give Fruta Conquerors $300,000 in the coming days to go specifically towards the repair of the roof.”
Forde expressed the hope that corporate Guyana and the government will follow in the footsteps of the Federation in helping the club to start remedial work on the roof.
“Because a lot of the material that are stored here have been vandalised because some of the elements from the community found themselves in the building through the roof…the balls are exposed to the elements, the books, the chairs…it’s really a terrible situation here at the club, and we as a federation will do our part to help,” Forde stressed.
Director of Sport Christopher Jones stated that when his office was approached by the club’s executives in 2015, the priority was assistance in upgrading the club house. Jones related that the administration is now in a position to help the club through the Ground Enhancement Fund.
“I could announce to you now that this club house will receive funding through the Ground Enhancement Fund in 2017 so rest assured that the roof and other aspects of the facility will be enhanced. We don’t want to only stop there, but we would want to encourage Mr. Thomas to make a similar application again in 2018 for other enhancements to be done to your facility,” Jones said.
The Fruta Conquerors Football Club, which was established in 1982, is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year.
