Sports Minister Isaac Asiamah has reiterated that he is keen on implementing every government whitepaper that is signed by the President.
Taking his turn at the Meet The Press series in Accra, Wednesday December 4, he denied talk that he is not keen on implementing the recommendations of the Dzamefe Commission following the Black Stars’ participation in the World Cup in Brazil in 2014.
“This is a matter I have followed keenly when I was in opposition. As a ranking member then, I remember at the time I filed a motion on the floor of the House calling for parliamentary inquiries.”
“When a president sets up a commission of inquiry, we have the report by the commission making recommendations to the president. Because we watch the proceedings on TV, sometimes, we think that everything that was said there was put in the final document — that is the white paper.”
A lot of issues came up, he noted, but the legal document binding on government is the whitepaper signed by the president.
“Since I assumed office, I have complied with all the recommendations approved by the whitepaper.”
He cited paying wages directly into the players’ accounts in Ghana and not in cash as an example.
“We have tasked the ministry not to pay them cash again. As we speak, we have never given them cash since I became a minister. Everything goes through their bank accounts in cedi equivalence.”
Ghana’s participation at the FIFA 2014 World Cup attracted international attention for the wrong reason as the Black Stars’ behavior off the field overshadowed the three games they played in Brazil.
A chartered jet flew more than $3 million to Brasilia, Brazil to prevent a possible boycott of Black Stars’ game against Portugal, albeit Ghana lost the match 2-1. Armed escort guarded the money to the hotel the team had camped.
