By: R.G. Antonet A. Go
ZAMBOANGA CITY, (PNA) — The city government needs more than P37 million to rehabilitate the Mayor Joaquin F. Enriquez Jr. Memorial Sports Complex, which is presently temporarily converted into an evacuation center.
The sports complex serves as the biggest among the evacuation centers that houses thousands of families displaced by the standoff that started when hundreds of rebels infiltrated this city last September 9.
However, City Sports Development Officer Bernardito Patiño said Monday that P37 million alone is needed to rehabilitate the track oval and the playing courts–basketball, tennis, and volleyball.
The track oval was constructed in 1992 with technical person from Germany who supervised and assisted in its construction.
“The material for the track oval is costly since it is imported from Germany,” Patiño said.
The sports complex was constructed when this city first hosted the Palarong Pambansa in 1992.
Patiño said they have yet to conduct a full assessment in the entire area since there are still thousands of evacuees staying at the sports complex.
He said they are on the final phase of rehabilitation of the sports complex’s facilities like the swimming pool, bleachers, locker rooms and comfort rooms when it was converted into an evacuation center.
The standoff, which was triggered by the infiltration of hundreds of Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) rebels, has displaced more than 100,000 people.
A large number of them are still housed at the sports complex.