Do the Black Queens play for the NDC? – Nii Lante hits out at Sports Ministry for refusal to pay debts

The former Sports Minister, Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye, has lashed out at the Ministry of Youth and Sports for their refusal to pay the arrears of the National Women’s team, the Black Queens after their participation in the 2016 African Women’s Cup.

Nii Lante revealed that the Black Queens petitioned parliament for their arrears at the 2016 African Cup of Nations where the team placed 3rd at the tournament held in Cameroon four years ago.

The Black Queens were owed $25,000 by the state in 2016 but the former Sports Minister, Nii Lante Vanderpuye paid $13k after the entire playing body of the team demonstrated publicly in an embarrassing turn of events.

However four years on, the former Sports Minister has confirmed that the players are yet to receive arrears of their monies owed them by the state.

“We’ve received petition here from the Black Queens, they came to parliament and submitted a petition to us," Nii Lante Vanderpuye said.

According to the Odododiodoo MP, the Black Queens were informed by the former deputy Sports Minister, Pius Enam Hadzide that the state wouldn’t be able to pay their arrears because they were owed by the previous government. An issue that compelled Nii Lante to question if the Black Queens play for the NDC government.

“The current deputy minister for information who was the then deputy minister for sports told them that some of those monies were owed by the NDC government so they are not going to pay. I didn’t know that the girls were playing for the NDC government, I thought they were playing for Ghana so I was surprised. I told the girls I don’t believe he said that but they said he said that. If indeed he said that, it is very myopic and that should tell you who he is,” Nii Lante Vanderpuye said.