Ex-Kotoko star stranded in Kenya

Jackson Owusu, a former Asante Kotoko midfielder, has been locked up in Kenya over unpaid hotel bills amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The 31-year-old joined Kenyan club Gor Mahia FC earlier this year after ending his stint with Lebanese side Tadamon SC based on the recommendation of former Asante Kotoko coach, Steve Pollack.

All football activities in Kenya have been suspended due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Jackson Owusu, in an interview with Nairobi News, revealed that he has been detained in Jimlizer Hotel in Buruburu, where he resides in Kenya over unpaid bills of $6,000 equivalent to GH¢30,000.

Owusu narrated how he is ‘dead broke’ and how his pleas to the club management to pay the pending bills have not been responded to as quickly as he expected.

“The chairman (Ambrose Rachier) has always been promising to come on a number of occasions to assist me but he has not been here. I am not allowed to leave with anything out of the hotel until there is a commitment from the club that the money will be paid. As at now, I don’t know when this will happen,” Owusu said.

The Ghana international revealed that the issue has really troubled his poor parents in Ghana who are really worried about the plight of their son in a foreign land.

“My parents are poor and fully depend on me and they live in Kumasi many kilometres away from Accra. But I have been forced to reach out to them and sometimes they have been forced to travel to town and send me something little. You also know that here at the club we have also not been paid and I can’t assist them.

“I survive many times by only eating one meal in a day and it has to be given out after the attendant has received the go ahead from the manager. Some fans brought me food on Wednesday and I am really grateful for their kind gesture,” he added.

While reacting to the issue, Gor Mahia Deputy Secretary General Ronald Ngala asked Owusu to be patient, saying that the issue will be handled by the club.

However, a source at the club revealed that it was not clear how Owusu was still staying in the hotel yet fellow foreign players David Mapigano and Juma Balinya are living in the rental houses.

“Usually when a foreign players join Gor, they familiarise themselves with the environment for even a month then after salary payments they move out and rent a house on their own,” the source who wished not to be named said.