Member of Parliament for Old Tafo, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, has criticised the organisation of the ongoing African athletics competition in Ghana, raising concerns about poor planning, safety issues, and the rising cost of hosting sporting events in the country.
In a statement, the lawmaker compared the current competition to the successful hosting of the 2023 African Games by the previous government.
According to him, Ghana was able to organise 29 sporting disciplines across several venues during the African Games, demonstrating the country’s capacity to host major international events.
He stated that the operational cost of the 2023 African Games was about US$49 million, which amounted to roughly GH¢548 million at the exchange rate of 11.2 at the time.
Assafuah argued that it is surprising that a single sporting discipline is now reportedly costing about GH¢40 million despite visible signs of poor organisation and weak coordination.
The MP also expressed disappointment that the Ministry of Sports was unable to secure the hosting rights for the 17th Africa Aquatics Swimming Championships, which is currently being hosted by Algeria.
He questioned why the athletics event Ghana managed to secure has been surrounded by logistical difficulties and negative reports.
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Assafuah further raised concerns over the safety of athletes after reports emerged that an athlete’s jumping equipment broke during competition.
According to him, the incident could have resulted in a serious injury and reflects the dangers associated with poor event organisation.
The Old Tafo MP accused the current administration of focusing more on public relations and optics instead of committing the necessary resources to ensure a successful international sporting event.
He warned that Ghana risks damaging its reputation within the international sporting community if urgent steps are not taken to address the challenges surrounding the competition.
Assafuah added that the country can only hope to avoid sanctions or further embarrassment as concerns continue to grow over the management of the event.
