I have set my priorities right - Youth and Sports Minister

Mr Isaac Kwame Asiamah, Minister of Youth and Sports, has debunked assertions that, he is the luckiest minister at the ministry, having survived the last two years at one of the hottest ministries in the country.

He said, he was not a lucky minister but had rather had set his priorities right, adding that, his aim was to leave a lasting legacy in sports through the provisions of sporting infrastructures across the country.

Mr Asiamah said the assertions made by Mr Kobena Mensah Woyome, ranking member of the Youth, Sports and Culture Committee of Parliament, that he had been the luckiest Youth and Sports Minister to have had funds at his disposal for sports development was untrue.

He said, contrary to that assertion, he had a vision of leaving a legacy and benchmark for the future and therefore set his priorities right to meet that target.

In an interview with the GNA Sports, Mr. Asiamah said, previous Youth and Sports Ministers, have had the resources and funds available to accomplish more than what he had started, but they did not have that aim and agenda, which distinguished him from them.

“I came to office as the Youth and Sports Minister, with an aim of leaving a lasting legacy for the future generations of this country. I wanted to be remembered as a minister, who supervised the construction of many sporting infrastructures and youth centers across the country, but not to waste the resources available at my disposal.

“This project we have undertaken has been a major discussion by the Akufo-Addo led Government. I contacted Mr Emmanuel Asigri, the Chief Executive Officer for the National Youth Authority (NYA) and today we are about to complete ten multi-purpose modern youth centres nationwide, which is unprecedented.

“If previous Sports Ministers have had this vision and aim, we wouldn’t have been at where we are, we would have channelled those funds into another area in the sector, which would have benefited us as Ghanaians,” he added.

The Member of Parliament for the Atwima Mponua constituency and a former chairman for the Youth, Sports and Culture Committee of Parliament said, it would be his proudest moment, after his term of office, to see all the regions in the country receive modern multipurpose youth centres.

“We are committed to providing and maintaining the necessary sports infrastructure for sustained development in sports and to ensure that sports is used as a tool to promote the image of Ghana and contribute to national development.

“Funds for the project has never been a challenge because we have planned well for this and we would see to its completion,” he said.

The centers, when completed would have the following facilities; FIFA standard football pitches in all the ten regions, basketball courts, handball courts, volleyball courts, tennis courts, housing rooms, ICT centers, entrepreneurship training centres, restaurants, gymnasiums, and multipurpose conference halls.