GFA must resuscitate the league
It is no mean feat to consistently qualify for the FIFA World Cup. However, does consistent qualification for the World Cup imply an automatic demise in our Premier League?
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Since Mr Kwesi Nyantakyi took over the helm of the FA in 2005, the only thing he can boast of is overseeing the qualification of the Black Stars to the World Cup. Should the GFA consider this as its greatest achievement? Is qualification to the World Cup the only agenda on the books of the FA?
The state of the Premier League even makes the populace wonder if we have a football association at all. Strikingly, the poor turnout to stadiums, exodus of our key players to other African leagues, disgraceful wages received by players, deplorable state of pitches even at the national stadia, inadequate sponsorship for the league and a lack of classic players are the hallmark of our league presently.
The hard truth is that improvement in the quality of our league doesn’t seem likely any moment from now as the stakeholders and authorities that be have sat unconcerned and watched the league grow steadily from bad to worse.
Indeed, there is no smoke without fire. Why has our once glorious and powerful league become a white elephant? What needs to be done to restore its glory, dignity and beauty?
One salient but often ignored fact about being a leader is that the call to leadership is a call to sacrifice and not to amass wealth. The FA definitely needs to develop an Ohene Djanesque mentality in order to steer the affairs of our football and restore it to the admirable state we once upon a time revelled in.
The least said about the recent payments of $15,000 each to the executives of the FA as ex-gratia, the better. That money could definitely have been pumped into the league to restructure and reorganise it. The FA has to develop a heart that will love to see the league develop even at the expense of its luxury.
The FA officials must be willing to lay down their stomach for the time being and see to the development of our leagues. After all, when clubs are thriving and the league is exciting, definitely they would reap the fruits.
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I appeal to the executives of the FA to put a stop to the gargantuan amount of money they have been paying themselves and rather invest those funds into the league for, no one can make the Ghana Premier League better but we, the indigenous people of the land and it should begin with our very own Football Association.
Joy fills the heart of every Ghanaian anytime we qualify for the World Cup. However, is it expedient that we spend that much en route to our qualification for the tournament and even during the tournament? The Greece national team during the 2014 World Cup declined from taking any bonus as they directed that the money be used in constructing a sports facility. They stated emphatically that they only play for Greece and its people.
England players also donate all their bonuses received in international friendly games to charity. In EURO 2012, England players were to be given £1,500 for a win, £1,000 for a draw and £750 for a loss. The German national team also declined from taking any bonuses during the group stages of the 2014 World Cup but they still emerged as champions.
On the contrary, each Black Stars player takes home an unprecedented $10,000 as winning bonus per match. Of course, I am not proposing that the Black Stars shouldn’t be given any bonus or that they should decline their bonuses, but the money being allotted to them definitely exceeds what ought to be given to them in appreciation of their hard work on the field of play.
Fact is, playing international football is always about national pride. The nation comes first and financial rewards come last. I honestly believe that too much money is spent on the Black Stars, while our league is left unattended to. I also doubt if Black Stars players need financial motivation to perform to the best of their ability for our dear Motherland.
The over-emphasis on the Black Stars has also contributed to the decline of our league. The Stars players must be made to understand that it is with pride, honour and a sense of belonging that we put on the national colours. Expenditure on the Black Stars must be slashed drastically and the funds channeled to the development of the league.
The careless and reckless handling of the Premier League is also an issue that cannot be overlooked. Everyone is kept in the dark on when the league would resume as the commencement of the Premier League is treated like an ancient secret that needs to be guarded. The lack of planning for the league is just appalling. Issues that are supposed to be addressed in a matter of hours are made to drag on for several months as if the FA has no laid down rules or procedures for resolving disputes.
Mention can be made of the King Faisal case which delayed last season’s league and the alleged wrongful use of Obed Owusu by Asante Kotoko against Accra Hearts of Oak in the competition. The FA surely needs to plan ahead of time to ensure such unnecessary delays are avoided in the coming seasons.
The FA’s assertion that bringing in hiplife artists to perform at football matches would help improve the current state of our league is as false as thinking that a tower can be built in a single day. Football is a magnet on its own and those involved in it should be able to attract people to the various stadiums on their own. The inability of the footballers we have to attract fans to the stadiums just tells us how poor our league has become.
The money to be used in paying these artistes can be rather used to help resuscitate our dying, if not dead, leagues or given to Premier League clubs to do proper scouting of talents. It is very hurtful to see our league metamorphose into the proverbial bat which is always hanging but looking downwards.
The GFA needs an internal revolution; a change of the status quo. The leaders and stakeholders involved must brace themselves for a massive turnaround in order to leave behind a legacy as those who rescued Ghana football from drowning and not as those who enthusiastically, vibrantly and non-chalantly sank it deep into the ocean.