Tamale, Aug.1, GNA - All is set for work to begin on the construction of an ultra-modern stadium in Tamale, one of the four venues chosen for the hosting of the prestigious CAN 2008 soccer festival in Ghana. The Local Organizing Committee (LOC) for the tournament, made a giant step on Saturday when it inaugurated an eleven-member committee under the chairmanship of Mr Saaka Bole-Naa, Headmaster of Tamale Secondary School to oversee the building of the stadium.

Dr. Kofi Amoah, Chairman of the LOC who inaugurated the Committee enjoined the members to assist in encouraging estate owners and landlords in Tamale in the Metropolis to paint their buildings and get dilapidated and broken down vehicles off the street.

" You will assist to eliminate ugly structures that have become an eye sore and blinded the beauty of Tamale so that a decent city will be created to bring pride and joy to Ghanaians," he said.

Dr. Amoah noted that when work is completed, Tamale along with its sister cities of Accra, Sekondi-Takoradi and Kumasi, which are the three other cities slated for the 2008 African Cup Of Nations would become a magnet for attracting tourist and other investors to Ghana.

The Chairman of the Tamale Venue Organising Committee, Mr Bole-Naa said for the first time, Tamale would have a direct feel of the euphoria that international tournaments normally generate and promised the LOC that the Committee would work very hard to present Africa with an excellent tournament.

He said he was optimistic that the choice of Tamale as one of the venues would produce a healing and soothing effect in the Northern Region that genuinely needs to be relaxed and entertained after the period of unrest.

Mr. Bole-Naa on behalf of the Committee thanked the LOC for the confidence reposed in them and said the members would not wax-cold but work hard for the attainment of a successful tournament both in Tamale and Ghana.

The Committee has been tasked with the responsibility to liaise with the LOC for the purposes of attaining the objectives of organizing the tournament for specific matches at the venue, especially in relation to sanitation and beautification of the venue city.

Additionally, the Venue Organising Committee (VOC) shall promote greater community participation through the LOC volunteer scheme at the local level to enhance decentralization.