Sport Minister Olivia “Babsy” Grange has hit back at Opposition spokesman for sports Wavell Hinds for comments he made regarding the lighting at the National Stadium during the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs) recently.

High school’s five-day track and field event took place from March 19-23 with evening sessions requiring the use of lights.

Hinds voiced his frustration with the level of brightness that the stadium lights were producing and questioned Grange for her role in the situation.

“International Girls’/Boys’ Champs 2024 is up and running,” he posted on March 20 his official X account, accompanied by a photo of one of the light towers. “The stadium rental fee is approximately $13 million. But the bank of lights by the finish line has only 14 of the 144 bulbs functioning. Unfortunately, the place is in darkness. Minister Babsy Grange, what is happening? Unacceptable!”

Hinds’ displeasure continued in the following days, posting, “Finish line still dark [Minister Grange]. Unacceptable!”

Grange, who attended Champs on the second as well as the final day, didn’t immediately respond to Hinds’ posts. However, she told the Jamaica Observer recently that he was uninformed and the lighting was adequate.

“My shadow in the Opposition posted the posts on social media about the lights at the stadium which I thought was very divisive, very underappreciative,” Grange said.

“What he failed to point out was that there were a bank of lights, not on the tower because those lights were obsolete, but we compensated for that by providing other lights. I can confirm that we have installed LED lights on tower four and some additional LED lamps on the canopy. The lighting levels inside the stadium, whilst not at its optimal level, are within the acceptable standards especially at the finish line. We’ve had no complaints from the meet director, no complaints whatsoever.”

The Observer spoke to a senior member of ISSA who said they received no reports about poor lighting from the technical committee, and also said the television broadcasters of the event seemed satisfied with the lighting.

As part of the stadium’s upgrade set to commence in 2025, Grange says new towers of lights will be a priority in the next few years.

“We can only continue to patch the existing system until the refurbishing programme starts,” she said. “The original fixtures are obsolete, and the replacement of the light system is one of the first items to be completed in the refurbishing programme,” the minister said.