Tensions flare at protest for football reforms
A protest march yesterday by hundreds of Ghanaians demanding reforms in football administration and the revival of the Black Stars ended in near chaos as angry demonstrators booed and charged at the Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, Evans Opoku Bobie, and leading officials of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) who showed up at the Independence Square to address the demonstrators at the end of the three-hour march.
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The angry reaction of the crowd prompted the swift intervention of the police who whisked away the deputy minister; GFA General Secretary, Prosper Harrison Addo; and Oduro Sarfo, a member of the GFA Executive Council, in a pick-up to avert any danger.
It was an anti-climax to an otherwise peaceful protest dubbed, “Save Ghana Football" which was organised to exert pressure on the government and the GFA to find a lasting solution to the dwindling fortunes of the sport in the country.
It was convened by a group of sports journalists, including Saddick Adams of Angel TV/ Angel FM, Patrick Osei-Agyeman (Countryman Songo) of Adom TV, Dan Kweku Yeboah of UTV/ Peace FM, and Veronica Commey, among others, and was triggered by the Black Stars' abysmal performance at the just-ended Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Cote d'Ivoire.
The demonstrators marched from the Obra Spot at the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange through some principal streets of Accra and ended at the Independence Square, with the participants wielding placards with inscriptions such as: “We must evaluate our football infrastructure”, “Football is not politics, stay off”, “Use World Cup revenue to develop football”, “Football is not only Black Stars”, “Lack of facilities is killing our game”, “Go back to Ben Koufie development plan”, “Our football needs togetherness, not division”, Black Stars is not cash avenue for GFA”, among other issues affecting the administration and development of the sport.
Confusion
There was heavy police presence along the route and at some vantage points near key installations and offices, as they had originally planned to send a petition to the Ministry of Youth and Sports before they were re-directed to the Independence Square where officials of the ministry and the GFA were to address the demonstrators.
However, confusion ensued near the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection after the police prevented the demonstrators from proceeding to the Youth and Sports Ministry.
It took the intervention of one of the conveners, Patrick Osei-Agyeman, to plead with the participants to obey the police order and proceed to Independence Square.
There was heavy police presence along the route during the demonstration
“The original plan was to go to the ministry, but let’s all go to Independence Square to submit the petition because those who will receive the petition are already there,” he told the impatient protestors.
ACP Asamoah Frimpong later explained to the Daily Graphic that the police were deployed to enforce the agreed route.
“There’s no confusion.
We didn’t stop them from going to the ministry.
We came here because that was the original plan,” he said.
While at the Independence Square, the conveners were advised to send the petition to Parliament before addressing the gathering, which they obliged.
Concerns
The demonstrators, including veteran football administrator, Alhaji Karim Gruzah, expressed various concerns about the administration of the game and the falling standard of the sport, including management of the national teams, lack of infrastructure, and the perception that the leadership of the FA were exploiting their positions for personal benefits instead of ensuring the growth of the sport.
The founder of the Division One League side, King Faisal FC, accused the President of the GFA, Kurt Simeon-Okraku, of destroying the sport through poor administration.
“He has destroyed our football.
Look at a team like Ashgold; he has destroyed it.
Is that right?
If Ghana will be truthful, why should Kurt overlook a court order to go and organise an election?
He doesn’t respect the justices of this country and they are watching him,” lamented Alhaji Gruzah.
Others such as sports journalist, Ohene Brenya Bampoe, shared similar sentiments about the dwindling fortunes of the sport under the current GFA administration.
“This is not business as usual.
We can’t play in three AFCON tournaments and win only one game and continue to do the same old things.
We are letting the authorities know that we are at our very lowest as a country.
This is the passion of the nation and it must be on the minds and hearts of everybody, especially those who manage football," he said.
“This demonstration is a very important step.
The crowd here shows that people still love football and this should be a signal to those managing it that they are managing a very important aspect of our national life.”
Co-convener, Mr Kweku Yeboah believes the protest should send a strong signal to the FA that Ghanaians are demanding positive change.
“Things must change. People have come from outside Accra to join us in this demonstration just to let the hierarchy of Ghana football and the government know that we love our football,” he said.
