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Final funeral rites for Alhaji Jawula scheduled for February at Kpembe
Final funeral rites for Alhaji Jawula scheduled for February at Kpembe

Final funeral rites for Alhaji Jawula scheduled for February at Kpembe

The family of the late Lepowura Alhaji M.N.D Jawula have released a programme for the final funeral rites for the elderly statesman who passed away in the USA on January 21.

He was buried on Sunday, January 22, 2023, in Nashville, Tennessee in line with Islamic rules.

His burial was preceded by Janazah (burial prayers) held last Sunday simultaneously at the family house at Accra Newtown and Nashville.

Scores of people turned up at the family house in New Town for the prayers and to sympathise with the surviving mother of the late Alhaji Jawula.

Final funeral rites

The Jawula Family of the Lepo gate met on January 27 and after deliberated on the funeral of their kinsman to take place in Kpembe, in the East Gonja Municipality of the Savannah Region as follows:

The third day Adua, Friday, February 3; seventh day Adua on Monday, February 6; with the 12th day Adua taking place on February 9.

Book of Condolence

A book of condolence has meanwhile, been opened for the late Lepowura at his Baatsona residence in Accra. The family has thus encouraged well-wishers to visit from 9:00am in the morning to 5:00pm daily.

Janazah

Among the sympathisers were some of the men who Alhaji Jawula closely worked with during his active days in Ghana football administration.

These included his predecessor Chairman, Nana Brew Butler, his vice Chairman, Joseph Ade Coker, Professor Joshua Alabi, Yaw Antwi-Gyamfi and the Chairman of the Ghana League Clubs Association (GHALCA), Kudjoe Fianoo.

An astute civil servant who rose through the ranks to become a Chief Director in the Service, he was famed for his long association with Ghana Football, serving at both club and international level, and rising to become Chairman of the GFA in the mid 1990s and also, an Executive Committee member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Until his death, he was the Chairman of the Professional League Board and also a member of the CAF Interclub Competitions Committee.

Additionally in football, he was synonymous with the success story or Real Tamale United, the traditional club from the Northern Region.

Football and sports

A sportsman himself, he was a sprinter and table tennis player for his school and represented at the various inter-colleges competition.

It was, however, his excellence in football administration that earned him popularity both in Ghana and the world over.

Serving as a key member of the Real Tamale United (RTU) management for a long time, Alhaji Jawula was instrumental in the formation of the Organisation of Ghana League Clubs (OGLA), now known as the Ghana League Clubs Association.

From that association, he became the Vice Chairman of the GFA, working with Nana Brew Butler. In 1997, Alhaji Jawula was elected Chairman of the GFA with Ade Coker as his vice.

His tenure is described as the part of the golden age for the development of Ghana football as many young talents emerged and they took the world by storm.

He superintended the success stories of the national Under -17 team, the Black Starlets who lifted the 1995 World Cup in Ecuador.

As Vice Chairman, he led the Under-23 side, the Black Meteors to win Africa’s first medal, bronze, at the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1992.

It was also during his tenure that the female senior team, the Black Queens made their debut at the 1999 Women’s World Cup in the USA after winning silver at the maiden Women’s African Cup of Nations.

He was elected as a member of the CAF Executive Committee and later on became a member of the Interclub competitions, serving both as a technical person and a Match Commissioner.

After his tenure, he remained part of the football family and played various roles, serving as the Chairman of the FA Cup and also the Premier League Board.

His tenure as the Chairman of the GFA was not entirely without controversy as it was during his tenure that the Justice Gbadegbe Commission was set up to probe the refurbishment of the Accra Stadium also known after the 1999 Youth Championships.

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