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The President of Ghana Athletics, Bawa Fuseini, has debunked reports in Ghana that athletes preparing for the Olympic Games have threatened a strike over unpaid bonuses or per diems.
Responding to media reports in Ghana, Bawa Fuseini indicated that his outfit is not in a position to determine the bonuses that should be paid to athletes who will participate in the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Speaking on The Game on GHOne TV and Starr FM, Bawa Fuseini emphasized that it is the sole responsibility of the Ghana Olympic Committee and the Ministry for Youth and Sports to decide on the amount to be paid to athletes as bonuses and per diems for the Olympic Games.
“I have not had any discussion with either the Ministry or the GOC with regards to bonuses. It’s not within my power to determine bonuses for the Olympic Games.”
“It is solely the responsibility or the authority of the Ghana Olympic Committee to recommend the amount to the Ministry, and the Ministry will then approve it. If an athlete wins, the Ministry will pay. So it’s not on the Athletics Federation to determine the bonuses; it’s just outside our authority,” he told GHOne TV.
Bawa Fuseini further responded to concerns raised over per diems, confirming that the Ministry already has an agreement over per diems.
“They asked me about per diems, and what I told them was that we have discussed the issues with the International Games Committee and that the Ministry has already agreed on the per diems right from the pre-game camping to the Olympic Games. These are two different budgets. The pre-camping budget is different from the Olympic Games budget, and he confirmed that they have already finished the per diems and all allowances with the athletes and officials right from the pre-games to the Olympic Games,” he said.
“People are turning it to the Olympic Games and Olympic bonuses. This story has nothing to do with the Olympic team; it has nothing to do with the athletes. The athletes never complained about anything Olympics as far as I’m aware. The athletes are comfortable, they are training, and they will deliver.”
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games are scheduled to take place from July 26th to August 11th, 2024.
