Event organiser and entertainment critic, Kwaku Asiedu, popularly known as KOKA, has said that the National Sports Authority (NSA) should be blamed for the controversy surrounding the stadium booking between Shatta Wale and Stonebwoy.
According to him, the sports authority can bring clarity to the matter by inviting all parties involved to explain the processes to them and resolve outstanding issues that bother any of the artistes.
His comment comes on the back of Shatta Wale's claim that he has been told Stonebwoy will do his show this year and his own will have to be done next year due to the clash of the dates for the same venue.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with GhanaWeb, on Wednesday, September 20, 2023, Kwaku Asiedu accused the National Sports Authority (NSA) of causing the controversy between Stonebwoy and Shatta Wale over the booking of the Accra sports stadium for their shows.
“The National Sports Authority should be blamed for whatever that is going on. Now, Shatta has done the show there three times. So even if today Stonebwoy comes and says that I want to do an event, and you know how to set up in the stadium is detailed and very complicated, even how delicate the grass is, so you need more time to do the set-up. So once it's communicated, it's good to contact Shatta Wale to discuss the new deal with him as to whether it suits him or not.
“NSA should sit the two people down and renegotiate the dates if they want they want to do business. So either Stonebwoy push his show to either December 20 or 19, 2023 to get enough time to do his show,” he said.
The entertainment critic went ahead to recount his experience with the National Sports Authority when he booked the Kumasi stadium for a musical show.
“My experience with them was when I used the Kumasi stadium for an event last year called ‘Oseikrom Bronya.’ What you do is, there is a rate for each part of the stadium when you want to use it. so the rate is confirmed for you.
“Per experience, they don’t do refunds. So if you agree to three days and you go and pay, and you are not able to use the date, it is your problem. The best they can do is to give you the opportunity to choose another day for the event and that will depend on if the venue is free,” he said in an interview with GhanaWeb.
Background
In expressing his fury over a supposed decision by the National Sports Authority to allow Stonebwoy to host a show at the Accra Sports Stadium on a date he (Shatta Wale) is also scheduled to hold an event at the same venue, the Dancehall musician indicated that the action was taken without a critical analysis of the possible consequence which includes violence.
A 40-minute Facebook live video on Tuesday which captured his fury as he narrated his side of the story saw the Shatta Movement boss chastising the authorities for acting inappropriately.
Shatta Wale and Medikal had previously announced plans for their annual Freedom Wave Festival, scheduled to run from December 20 to 25.
The festival's activities, as outlined in a flyer released on September 7, 2023, included the arrival of regional fan bases on December 20, an exhibition of SM merchandise on the 21st, a pre-concert featuring new artists on the 22nd, industry prayers on the 23rd, artist dress rehearsals on the 24th, and the climax of the festival on the 25th.
However, Stonebwoy on September 16 also released the flyer for his Bhim Concert to be held at the Accra Sports Stadium on 22nd December.
This stoked conversation with many people wondering how both artistes would have their respective events at the same venue on the same day.
On Tuesday, Shatta Wale accused President Akufo-Addo's daughter of orchestrating this situation. He insulted colleague Stonebwoy with some unprintable words and jabbed the president's daughter for acting "foolishly."
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Entertainment critic, Kwaku Asiedu (KOKA)