Ghana’s minister of Youth and Sports, Isaac Asiamah has expressed confidence that football will resume in Ghana “very soon”.
Sporting activities in the country have been suspended since March due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. This led to the cancellation of the 2019-2020 Ghana Premier League (GPL) season.
Speaking at the 26th ordinary session of congress of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), the minister said the 2020-2021 season will begin very soon.
“Let me commend you for the various steps you have taken in developing Ghana football after the Normalisation process,” said Asiamah.
“Indeed, the innovative and inspiring BringBackTheLove campaign embarked on by the GFA showed clear signs that football was on the ascendancy and fans were beginning to patronise domestic league matches again.
“Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic halted the momentum that the leagues were generating. It is our fervent hope that innovative steps would be put in place to ensure that when the game finally returns, which I know will be very soon, it will pick up from where it left off.
“With the positive results we are getting from the fight against the pandemic, government is optimistic that soon it would be safe and appropriate to lift the restrictions on both individual and team contact sports activities in Ghana,” he concluded.
Earlier in the week, former Ghana deputy minister for sports Joseph Yamin had criticized the government for the lingering ban on football. He stated that clubs are struggling as the government has not provided any stimulus package for them.
“I do not know the patience the government is asking from football people in easing the restrictions on football and contact sports,” Yamin said.
“The clubs are struggling due to Covid-19 and the government has not provided any stimulus package for them.
“The government has to invest in football upon its resumption [after this] decision to still put football on hold. The government must be truthful to football people, it [the government] is not ready to invest in football.
“It doesn’t make sense to allow an unlimited number of people for gatherings and church services and still suspend football.
“The [incumbent] NPP [New Patriotic Party] government is just being wicked in the suspension of football. The government is broke and will be exposed upon the resumption of football.”
Plans and schedules for the return of football is yet to be revealed by the GFA, but there are hopes that football in Ghana will resume in October.