The New Era Africa has taken note of the public interest in the sacking of Coach Kwesi Appiah, until recently the head coach of the Ghana Black Stars. Football has gained so much currency in Ghanaian public life that major decisions such as the sacking of the coach of our national team will necessarily arouse justifiable interest in the Ghanaian public.

To be fair, coach Kwesi Appiah during the period at post, did not show any serious readiness to coach the national team. Issues of lack of respect between him and the playing team, low self-confidence, lack of team management skills, relatively low technical acumen et al constantly and consistently manifested during his tenure. A national team such as we have deserves a coach with better management skills and technical expertise. That coach must exude great deal of confidence and command a lot of respect on and outside the field among players and stakeholders within the football fraternity. There was therefore the need to get a replacement for him in this regard.

What is baffling, however is that the GFA saw all these issues but still went ahead to renew his contract after that manifestly woeful performance (although he cannot fully be blamed)at Brazil only to turn around in less than four (4) months to terminate it. There are several questions that must be answered regarding the surrounding circumstances in the saga. The GFA must tell Ghanaians what had changed between 24^th May, 2014when the contract was renewed and 12^th September 2014 when the coach was sacked.Was the termination of the contract based on any strategic guidelines? Or there were some intervening factors in between time? Or the GFA just haphazardly hires and fires without due regard to orderly procedure? More questions than answers.

Another important issue is the caliber of replacement we now have for Kwesi Appiah. It is worrying that Milovan Rajevac’s name feature prominently as a prospective successor to Kwesi Appiah as the coach of the senior national team.Indeed we recall that in 2010, this same Milovan Rajevac abandoned the team when it needed him the most. That was the end of his association with the Black Stars and Ghanaians, and it certainly showed his unwillingness to help Ghana football get better. Unfortunately, the GFA does not seem to have learnt any lessons and as a consequence, they seem to be working hard to bring him back to coach the national team. He is obviously not a viable replacement we should contemplate of contacting; or does the GFA derive any benefits from hiring expatriate coaches that the Ghanaian public is not aware of? 

It appears that all this is happening because of a lack of a clear strategy for developing Ghana football. As a result of this, Ghana football has seen little improvement over the years; we have failed to win the Africa cup since 1982,we were only able to qualify for the first timeas a country (the Brazilians of Africa football) for world cup just about eight (8) years ago; the local league continues to be in a shambolic state; it is unattractive and its standards are so low. Securing a good sponsorship for the local league nearly became a nightmarish dream but for the timely intervention of First Capital Plus Bank.

That aside, it is seriously unfathomable to record such high level of indiscipline in the current Black stars considering that the Black stars Management committee receives honorarium for no honourable work done. If one is to ask the vision of GFA with respect to football in the country, it will be very difficult to obtain a good answer. GFA branded the black stars and did nothing to promote the local league leading to a virtual collapse of the league. Now that Black stars are having serious leadership crises, what can the GFA claim as an achievement now?

GOING FORWARD

It is imperative therefore for the Ghana Football Association to develop a clear medium to long term strategic plan to guide the administration of football in Ghana. That strategy should include a plan to improve the local league; put the Black Stars in a better shape to shine at the world stage and to develop local talent in coaching and technical management. It is better to have local coaches with the right expertise for the Black Stars for several reasons. Accomplished Ghanaian football stars with clout and respect should be motivated to consider the highest coaching job in the land. Opting for this option will inure to the advantage of the country in the following ways. First, it will be more cost effective and second, it will help in many ways to bolster our cultural reorientation as well confidence in ourselves as Ghanaians.

In conclusion, New Era Africa wishes to reiterate the need for a clear strategy for the administration of football in Ghana. The GFA must show clear leadership that has credibility as its hallmark. The Ghana Football Association should also adhere to the principles of transparency and accountability in their operations. Performance contract, targets to the successive coaches and appraisal score must be yearly communicated to the public so that the public can track and follow the prospects of coaches of all our national teams. In the absence of this, Ghana football will hardly go anywhere.

 

Signed

Godwin Bush (Communications Director)                        

Mohammed Hardi (VP, Research and Strategy)  

Bernard Owusu (Founding President)