Don’t let Ghana Sports collapse on your heads!

It appears the clock is ticking for Ghana Sports to come to a complete halt when activities by the various disciplines will cease to function for lack of funds.

We hope we are not exaggerating or being alarmists, but certainly we can’t believe what we are hearing: the directive that the various disciplines whose funding has not been met should cease forthwith their activities.

The directive came earlier this week from no other quarter than the National Sports Authority (NSA) which minced no words in charging associations or federations not to undertake any travels or projects locally or internationally in the name of the NSA if they had not received money for such activities.

 The NSA further explained thus: “Usually the associations/federations went ahead to credit air tickets and other services after the Presidency had approved of some international events in anticipation that money would be released by the Ministry of Finance, but for the past four years those expected releases have not been done by the ministry and it is not clear when the funds will be released.”

It is instructive that the NSA must be suffocating under a huge financial debt incurred by the various disciplines in that regard and can no longer bear it.

But instead of turning to the associations, we thought the NSA, being a governmental agency directly under the Sports Ministry, would refer the matter to the appropriate quarters for immediate redress.

Or was the action by the NSA an indication that the Sports Ministry had turned deaf ears to it on such matters?

We think both the NSA and the Sports Ministry should not appear to be relegating or running away from their responsibility of seeing to the funding of sports disciplines in the country.

It sounds quite bizarre and we wonder how the Presidency could approve a budget for a sports event and yet such budget would never materialise or fizzle out altogether, as it were, at the Ministry of Finance, without recourse to the approving authority.

Of course, some administrative delays may be encountered in the process, but for the release of the money to be stalled for four years, and still counting, can only mean that the scheduled event should either be cancelled or money should be raised from elsewhere to be credited later.

Indeed, this appears to be the common scenario these days, as most of the disciplines are being funded from the poor pockets of their enthusiastic and benevolent private administrators.

But for how long can they continue to shoulder this responsibility on behalf of the NSA and the Sports Ministry, as the situation is now dire and the associations and federations are virtually in the throes of death?

Is it any wonder that the chairmen of the associations and federations have resolved to boycott the Brazzaville All Africa Games in September this year, since they lack the wherewithal to sponsor training camps and competitions, among others, towards the event and in the face of the NSA’s directives?

These must be challenging times for the Director General of the NSA, Mr Joe Kpenge, and not least Dr Mustapha Ahmed, apparently yet to fully grasp the nuances at the hydra-headed Sports Ministry.

They must salvage the situation, lest Ghana Sports (save football) collapses on their heads.