New GFA ExCo for better or for worse?
The long-awaited Executive Committee (ExCo) elections of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) finally took place at the FA Secretariat in Accra last Monday and Tuesday, amidst suspense and fanfare and left in its wake some major upsets.
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As expected, the usual intrigues associated with political elections in the land were rife in the FA polls this time round. These included reports of some candidates going to the extent of breaking the bank to secure vital votes to fulfil their lifetime ambitions of joining Ghana Football’s top brass.
As is usually the case, the keen nature of this year’s ExCo elections saw some top guns and hitherto acclaimed hot favourites falling, to the surprise of the entire football fraternity.
The most shocking of the upsets were the defeats suffered by the present GFA Vice-President, Fred Crentsil, and Kudjoe Fianoo, the CEO of newly crowned league champions, Ashantigold.
Even more striking about the predicament of these two gentlemen was the fact that they were considered to be key in President Kwesi Nyantakyi’s new administration. But wishes are not horses.
The exit of these incumbent Exco members, Crentsil and Fianoo, as well as Kofi Manu (Blue Blue), who lost their bids to represent Division One and the Premier League, could also be seen as a big loss to the FA’s top body due to their depth of knowledge and experience in the game.
However, their pain in last Tuesday’s polls was others’ gain as fellow incumbents such as George Afriyie, Kweku Eyiah and outspoken Wilfred Osei sailed through smoothly to serve another four-year term.
Alongside them were new faces such as Albert Commey, Delali Senaya, Kurt Okraku, Nanabanyin Eyison and good old J.F. Mensah of Ebusua Dwarfs fame, who finally made it to the ExCo in his third attempt.
We take this opportunity to congratulate the newly elected ExCo members, including the re-elected female football boss, Leanier Addy, and hope they will all contribute their quota in their new capacity as the policy makers of Ghana Football.
With the myriad of challenges facing our game, we are of the opinion that Ghana Football needs men with vision and drive to complement the efforts of Nyantakyi to achieve more laurels for the nation.
We are even more thrilled to see a blend of veteran football administrators and some ambitious young men join forces to inject some new life into all facets of the game.
Already, some of the new members are talking of working hard to give the GFA a new image which, we think, is a step in the right direction.
With the slots for clubs and the various constituent bodies decided, the focus of attention will now be on the Regional Football Association (RFA) elections which begin today and end next Tuesday.
We wish all the candidates the best of luck and entreat the delegates to exercise their franchise prudently to ensure that the destiny of Ghana Football is entrusted to safe hands.
