Save Ghana Football: Sports Journalists, Supporters Embark On Massive Protest
- Sports journalists and enthusiasts have thronged the streets of Accra to register their displeasure about the mismanagement of football in the country
- They call for drastic reforms in the Ghana Football Association and the Sports Ministry
- Others have called for the dismissal of Kurt Okraku, GFA president and a complete overhaul of the GFA upper echelon
Today, sports journalists and enthusiasts took to the streets to register their displeasure at what they describe as the mismanagement of the Ghana Football Association and the football industry in Ghana.
Protesters, led by prominent sports journalists including Saddick Adams and Patrick Osei Agyeman, popularly known as Countryman Songo, marched through the principal streets of Accra to Independence Square, where the march terminated.
Source: Twitter
The protesters hooted at the General Secretary of the GFA, Prosper Harrison Addo and Deputy Sports Minister, Evans Opoku Bobbie Osei, who had come to receive a petition detailing the protesters' grievances against the GFA.
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On placards held by protesters, some call for a total overhaul of the GFA. In contrast, others accuse the GFA president, Kurt Okraku and his officials of exploiting their positions to make a cash cow for the Black Stars, Ghana's national team.
The woes of football in Ghana
The Black Stars and the football industry in Ghana have not been in top shape for quite some time.
Their woes began with the investigative piece by Anas Aremeyaw Anas, which exposed the corruption at the heart of the GFA.
Kwesi Nyantakyi, the then-president, lost his job, and the GFA was submitted to a normalisation committee.
This led to general apathy among sports enthusiasts for the local sport.
Kurt Okraku had won the GFA presidency on the promise of "bringing back the love" for the game of football in Ghana; however, two terms into his tenure, sports enthusiasts say things have taken a turn for the worse.
The case against Kurt Okraku, Sports Ministry
Players in the local league are still complaining of being woefully underpaid and the social security contributions not paid by the clubs they play for.
The women's teams have suffered underfunding and have not received bonuses from previous games.
Sports facilities across the country, notably the Essipong Stadium and the Accra Sports Stadium, have been left in deplorable conditions, the former now uninhabitable.
And there is still low turnout at sporting events across the country.
All these were compounded by the abysmal performance of the Ghana Black Stars before and during the AFCON 2023, which saw it being kicked out at the group stage, leading to the sack of the coach, Chris Hughton, despite the huge funds allocated for the team.
Ablakwa leaked documents revealing Black Stars' massive $8 million 2023 AFCON budget.
In a related story, YEN.com.gh reported that the Black Stars of Ghana budgeted $8 million for preparation and participation in the 2023 AFCON tournament in Côte d'Ivoire.
The details were in a letter leaked by the North Tongu MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa on social media.
The North Tongu MP described the allocation as shocking and called for a parliamentary probe.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
