A member of the Ghana Football Association's (GFA) Executive Council, Nana Oduro Sarfo, has said that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) superintended Ghana's most expensive AFCON campaign.
Oduro Sarfo was reacting to North Tongu MP, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa's exposé on the Sports Ministry's budget for AFCON 2023.
In a social media post, the NDC MP published an official government document that showed the country allocated in excess of $8.5m for the tournament in Côte d’Ivoire.
Speaking on Asempa FM on Tuesday, Oduro Sarfo claimed that the MP made the document public as a diversionary tactic.
"He may have published the details to influence public discourse and deflect our focus from important issues. Maybe he did not like the fact that the New Patriotic Party's Parliamentary Primaries were peaceful, free and fair," he said.
"Or because he does not want Ghanaians to talk about the resumption of work on the National Cathedral."
Oduro Sarfo doubled down by stating that, in the history of Ghana's participation at the AFCON, the most ridiculous budgets have been approved by NDC governments.
"I have done my research and concluded that, in the history of this country, NDC governments have approved the most outrageous of budgets as far as AFCON is concerned."
"Even though the prize money for AFCON 2015 was $1.5, they (the NDC government) budgeted $15m."
Joy Sports checks have however disproved this allegation.
In February 2015, then Sports Minister Mahama Ayariga informed Parliament that Ghana's approved budget for the tournament was $4,774,519.19.
Government paid $3,224,139.20 in bonuses and allowances to players, the technical team, the management committee, as well as other officials of the team.
The Ministry said it reduced payments to players by 20%, while technical team members saw a 30% cut on their earnings from the previous tournament.
Mahama Ayariga also told Parliament that the Ministry spent ₵3,242,588.00 on the AFCON 2015 Qualifiers.
However, the minority caucus in Parliament rejected his account of government's expenditure because it did not include a full breakdown or an intermixed report of the budget.
Credit: Victor Atsu Tamakloe