We are barely 40 days from the
kickoff of the World Cup in Brazil. Naturally, everybody is excited about the
biggest football event in history.
For the Ghanaian soccer fan, it presents yet
another opportunity to witness the beautiful game, which hopefully will give us
a break from the bitter partisan politics that has become our fare.
I have had my take on our chances at
the tournament and I would not want to revisit the topic since not much has
changed since then. I believe we stand a chance of making it beyond the group
stage, and I further see us beating Portugal.
In 2006, when we made our debut at the
World Cup, not many queried the Black Stars' budget for the tournament -- understandably
so because it was our first appearance, and as such it was huge a learning
process for us. Fast forward to 2014 and many things have changed. Beyond the
excitement the tournament generates, transparency in the team’s expenditure has
become a paramount issue.
There were initial rumours that the
FA was considering a ridiculous amount of US$20 million as the budget for this
year’s World Cup. Thankfully, the amount that was approved was far less. But
the substantial reduction in the budget does not prevent us from seeking a
breakdown of the new figure.
I don’t know why the FA is treating
the subject of the budget as if the monies involved are coming from private
quarters rather than from tax payers. The situation is very sickening,
especially knowing that economy is deeply troubled and the citizenry are biting
the bullet in these trying times.
About a month ago, I watched with
disdain the FA’s Communications Director Ibrahim Sannie Daara on GTV argue that
the details of the budget must be treated as a national secret which must be
guarded with all might. In my estimation, it was such a ridiculous comment to
make, to start with.
What was depressing about Sannie
Daara’s approach was his attempt to rubbish figures being reported by other
journalists on the same platform. How can you rubbish the budget if you have
admitted having no knowledge of its contents?
His behaviour was despicable, to say
the least, when he appeared aggressively defensive over the budget. Personally,
I don’t think this issue should be allowed to die naturally. We have heard
about the financial malfeasance which has engulfed the Savannah Accelerated
Development Authority (SADA), GYEEDA, etc. The FA’s clandestine approach to
this budget does not help our fears either.
According to news reports, the budget
was approved by cabinet more than a month ago. With a little over a month to go
to the World Cup, the FA is yet to release the budget for scrutiny. While some
argue that the probability of collusion between the FA and Sports Ministry to
do something untoward is virtually impossible, I have my reservations on that.
Much as we love to watch the Black
Stars play every time, we are very mindful of their expenses, too. We should not
behave like the proverbial Ananse who spends all his income on entertainment
and goes home hungry? Respectfully, I would not want to comment on some of the
expenditure items being circulated in the media since the FA has denied them.
GFA President Kwesi Nyantakyi is a
fine leader who has transformed the FA. Obviously, he has a lot more to do. He
needs to put his house in order as people like Sannie Daara in charge of communication
are painting a bad picture of the FA under his administration. If he decides to
watch on unconcerned, we have no choice than to believe that he is complicit in
the effort to keep the public in the dark about the Stars’ budget.
We are waiting with bated breath to
see the contents of the budget. Those who think that we are too excited about
the World Cup and care less about the budget are joking. We have an eye on the
budget papa.
As for the Sports Ministry, their
bias for football has been the issue of many write-ups. It doesn’t seem like
they will change. Last year the International Tennis Federation (ITF) suspended
our membership because we were not able to raise US$1,500 or so to pay our
dues.
Yet we are able to spend thousands of
dollars on the football teams.
No wonder we classify such sports as “lesser
known”.
I am hoping that someday we change.
I’m out.
First published on 02 May, 2014
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