The Central Regional Communications Team Member for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Yaw Nkum (NYK) and the Greater Accra Regional Communications Team Member for the National Democratic Congress(NDC) Mohammed De-Rayal Samba, have underscored the need for Ghana to apologise to the Former President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kwesi Nyantakyi.
The two bemoaned the current state of Ghana Football, attributing it to the way Kwesi Nyantakyi exited as President of the Association.
They made the assertion on Atinka FM’s political show, “SIMPIESO” over the weekend, saying that, ‘We are all now suffering all because of what we did to him’.
In June 2018, Kwesi Nyantakyi resigned from his post as the GFA President following an expose by investigative firm, Tiger Eye PI.
“After a meeting of the Executive Committee this afternoon I decided to resign as President of the Ghana Football Association,” Kwesi Nyantakyi stated.
He explained that,”It stemmed out of the controversies generated by the investigative report of Tiger Eye PI. In the said report I committed a series of errors of indiscretion. I gravely associated the highest office of the land –the presidency- with private discussions I had with “Scammers” who deceived me into thinking they were genuine persons interested in investing in our country.”
Kwesi Nyantakyi continued that,“I hereby apologise unreservedly to the father of the Nation, H.E. Nana Akufo Addo, H.E. the Vice President, Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia, Hon. Ministers and Deputy Ministers of State for indiscretion in associating them with the private conversations on the video.”
Again, he said,“I wish to clarify that at no time prior to or subsequent to any deliberations on the video did I consult, contact or inform any Government official about discussions on the video. I take sole and personal responsibility for the proceedings on the video.”
He added that,“I wish to apologise to my family, work colleagues, friends, associates and the people of Ghana for the disappointment my indiscretion has caused them.This by no means is an admission of any other alleged wrongdoing in the video”, Mr. Nyantakyi said in a statement sent to the GFA General Secretary on Friday.”
Ghana’s Football History
In 1957, Ghana became the first sub-Saharan African nation to gain independence, and with that, a footballing legacy was born.
The Black Stars were not merely a team; they were a national symbol of pride, unity, and boundless potential. Ghana’s football shone as a beacon across Africa, inspiring generations and demanding respect on the world stage.
But today, that light has been extinguished. Ghana football, once the pride of Africa, lies in shambles. A dream built over decades has been shattered under the weight of incompetence, greed, and a catastrophic failure of leadership.
The heart of this collapse is the GFA, led by Kurt Okraku, a man whose promises of progress have crumbled into dust.
Okraku’s Presidency, starting in 2019, promised a reform but has instead delivered stagnation, chaos, and unprecedented decline.
This is not a stumble. This is a free-fall. Ghana football is dead.
In 2015, hope still lingered. Ghana reached the AFCON final, losing to Ivory Coast in a cruel penalty shootout.
It was a bitter loss, but it reaffirmed our place among Africa’s best. Yet, what followed was a spiraling decline: 2017: Quarterfinal exit. -2019: Round of 16 humiliation. -2021: Group stage elimination, a historic low. -2023: Ghana fails to qualify for AFCON 2024.
Ghana has failed to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations. In a group with Niger, Sudan, and Angola hardly Africa’s elite, the Black Stars managed no wins in six matches.
The numbers are damning: 3 goals scored in 6 qualifying games was catastrophic.
Read Also: Kwesi Nyantakyi banned for life; fined 500,000 Swiss Francs
Speaking to the issue, the two observed that following Kwesi Nyantakyi’s painful and disgraceful exit, Ghana football has never been the same.
According to them, there is too much ‘mafia’ in the GFA, calling for the need to eliminate it earlier before it kills Ghana’s football industry.
Still on the former GFA President, the two noted that, in his time, one could not play a league without a standard pitch unlike today where some teams play on such fields.
“Take a look at where Kotoko played its last match, our football has turned into business as usual where even the GFA President now has a team competing with its other competitors in the Ghana premier league, creating conflict of interest yet no one is talking about it,” they noted.
Again, they observed that the football venues and grounds have now been turned into conflict zones, adding that,”You can not go there and come without blemish or being beaten or hurt.”
The two took notice that currently, footballers in Ghana are not really interested in playing for Ghana, adding that they rather look for opportunities abroad because our football and the entire premier league has become a joke.
Meanwhile, Nana Yaw Nkum and Mohammed De-Rayal Samba have expressed disappointment in the ongoing Vetting Committee for not even having a veteran sports journalist and figures on the vetting Panel to be able to probe and even ask good sports questions during the vetting of the Sports Minister, Kofi Adams.
“We rather saw MPs and other figures who do not have any knowledge about football sitting and vetting a sports minister saying it was very pathetic in Ghana,” they stressed.
To them, there are more powerful sports personalities and veteran sports journalists in the country yet, none of these people were at the vetting, saying that this was a signal that Ghana’s football will continue to suffer if nothing is done about that attitude of a square peg in a round hole.
“Let us help save our football in Ghana by allowing Kwasi Nantakye to make a comeback to our football,” they called.
Ghana | Atinkaonline.com| Barimah Kwaku Saakwa