The Botswana Football Association (BFA) wishes to distance itself from the story carried in page 23 of the Weekend Post of Saturday 13-19 February 2016,  headed ‘BFA proposes a 30-year stadium lease to Francistown’.

While the BFA and the Francistown City Council (FCC) continue to engage on a variety of issues, including the future of the Old Francistown Stadium, no part of the engagements are ready for public consumption. While the BFA is not at liberty at the moment to divulge the direction and the tone of the engagements with the FCC, and even if it had monumental financial resources, it would never embark on the development of ‘a world class sports facility’ in a city that already has one, when other parts of the country in dire need do not have any.

The last paragraph of the story in question suggests that ‘Both the BFA and the FCC confirmed that the two organisations are working on a modality of transforming the Francistown stadium into an internationally recognised sports facility but could not be drawn into discussing much’. The BFA has never been invited to comment on the story and, as such, would have never issued such a confirmation.

The BFA however confirms that it continues to pursue land and such other necessary facilities throughout the country; especially as desired by its affiliates and would, as best as possible, treat its affiliates and stakeholders as equitably as possible.

The BFA, through its office, continues to be available to issue such clarity as may be necessary; to which end it encourages any media house, individual, group of individuals or any entity to engage it on such matters that concern them (the BFA) and national football activities.