Editorial (The Daily Searchlight, Thursday, 21st April, 2022)
The Confederations of African Football (CAF), has disapproved the Baba Yara Sports Stadium in Kumasi from hosting senior category “A” matches due to poor maintenance of the stadium.
This decision was made as a result of the report received by the association over observations that were made in the first leg encounter of the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) World Cup qualifiers between Ghana and Nigeria.
A statement signed by the Development Officer of CAF to the General Secretary of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Mr. Prosper Harrison Addo said, “Following the one match approval given by CAF for the use of Baba Yara Sports Stadium (Kumasi) in the FIFA World Cup Qatar African Qualifiers 2022 playoff round matches under the conditions that specific points were to be corrected in the stadium”.
According to the Association, the improvements made so far to make the Stadium a better one still does not meet the standards required by CAF to host senior international ‘A’ matches.
This damning designation should serve as a rude awakening to Ghana on our record of maintenance. The Baba Yara Sports Stadium underwent significant renovation in 2008, just fourteen years ago, and by rights, should have been in the most pristine of conditions.
The current designation is an indicator that managers of the stadium, possibly the largest in Ghana, have not lived up to their duties.
Naturally, this development should have led to some heads rolling, but without doubt, Ghanaians would, as usual, lament for a few days, and allow this tragedy too to disappear down memory lane until we have need of a top class stadium for an international engagement.
(This article was first published in the column EDITORIAL of the Daily Searchlight of Thursday, 21st April, 2022. The Daily Searchlight appears on the newsstands of Ghana every working day and for sale online twenty-four hours a day all day throughout the world on www.ghananewsstand.com).
