By lanre olaleye/Kumasi
Lagos - Contrary to reports, Confederation of African Football (CAF) actually paid a sum of $1million each to both Ghana and Nigeria to assist in the preparations for the GHA-NIG 2000 Nations Cup.
Since the lid was blown off the CAF grant early December, the Local Organising Committee had insisted that it received only a paltry sum of $300,000 from the continental soccer ruling body. But P.M.Sport investigations conducted here in Accra revealed that the Sports Minister, Damishi Sango and the Director of Organisation (LOC), Dr. Amos Adamu have indeed soiled their hands in the CAF grant scandal as Ghana LOC officials and local sports journalists confirmed that Ghana received $1 million from CAF. A top official of the LOC who pleaded anonymity disclosed that the $1 million received from CAF was acknowledged and judiciously spent . "Why is your LOC lying to you ? I'm surprised to hear that some people in Nigeria actually short-changed your country. It is bad," said the LOC source.
Further enquiries also proved affirmative. IK Ofori a sports commentator with a Ghanaian popular radio station, Tap Radio, expressed his disgust over what he described as a monumental fraud by the Nigerian LOC. "We first received the report of the CAF grant on Reuters and did a follow-up at the GFA where it was confirmed that the money is $1million. Are your officials so prolific in lying such that they could lie over an information that is on the wire services?" Ofori said.
Also, Sam Barrington of Ghana's High Street journal who incidentally is a Nigerian said it is disgraceful that Nigerian officials are not being honest to own up to the truth. As if that is not enough embarrassment, Nigerian sport journalists were shocked to find out that the $150 mandatory deposit demanded by CAF before issuing accreditation have not been remitted to CAF. Hence, Nigerian journalists were not allowed to enjoy the same privileges with their colleagues from other countries.
