The Ministry of Sports has admitted that the blackout that disrupted the Masters FC and Karonga United match at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe was disappointing, as stakeholders have raised concerns over the management and maintenance of the facility.

Ministry spokesperson McMillan Mwale told Capital FM that the stadium has backup generators designed to switch on automatically when the main power supply goes off.

“The Ministry will meet and engage all stakeholders who use the facility to find a lasting solution. The Ministry has the capacity to ensure stable power and other basic necessities at the venue, but sometimes electrical issues are hard to predict,” Mwale said.

Social commentator Peter Mumba described the incident as worrisome, calling for a change in the way the stadium is managed.

He said the blackout showed that the country was not ready to manage such a facility, arguing that the revenue generated by Bingu Stadium should be invested in its maintenance.

“It’s quite embarrassing, and I wonder if the authorities are not even embarrassed. As a country, we need to change the way we do our things. Those are the structures we need, but we are not ready to have them, as we are failing to take care of them,” Mumba said.

Sports analyst Parry Chinyama echoed the concerns, saying it was time for the government, the Football Association of Malawi (FAM) and the Super League of Malawi (SULOM) to engage ESCOM on providing a dedicated power line for the stadium, similar to those serving hospitals, where power outages are less frequent.

Chinyama also questioned why the backup generators were not tested before the match, particularly given that night games are scheduled at the stadium.

“It’s time to fix things going forward. We are about to host Egypt and other games. If this keeps up, we might lose the provisional CAF licence to host games at the venue. We might soon be banned, which will not look good,” Chinyama added.

The blackout disrupted Sunday’s match between Masters FC and Karonga United, which was suspended for 25 minutes after the floodlights went off. The incident has also prompted the Super League of Malawi (SULOM) to launch an investigation into the floodlight failure and the adequacy of backup power arrangements at the stadium.

Bingu National Stadium was constructed between 2012 and 2016 and officially opened in 2017.