Shake-up in Kotoko

Barring any unforeseen development the future of Kumasi Asante Kotoko is going to be shaped by an epoch making event at the Manhyia Palace on Saturday, according to sports bi-weekly, Graphic Sports.

At the behest of Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, spiritual Head and life Patron of Kotoko, all stakeholders of the club will gather to have an insight into how the club is to be run in the coming months and years.

The stakeholders will specifically be briefed on the composition of a new board for the club. Kotoko has been without a board since Mr Herbert Mensah was entrusted with the running of the club three seasons ago.

Other matters relating to how best Kotoko can claw back its phenomenal influence in national and continental football are also likely to be discussed.

Although Herbert Mensah has had a management team in place since assuming office, the absence of a board-situation engendered by the suspension of the club’s supporters.

They have all along called for the restoration of the board to, at least, ensure checks and balances in the administration of the club. The last Kotoko board was under the chairmanship of Mr E.K. Adu, now Ghana’s Ambassador to Denmark.

The coming into being of a new Kotoko board is certain to have some ramifications for the present management team for approval by the board. What role Herbert Mensah himself is going to play under the in-coming board has also been agitating people’s mind.

One school of thought postulates that since Herbert has invested in the club, he should be appointed the Chief Executive with a seat on the board to see to the day to day running of the club, but answerable to the board. However, this is countered by some, who point out that such an arrangement can only be a recipe for a chaotic running of the Porcupine club.

They buttress their argument with the kind of personality clash that characterised the relationship between the Maxibllion board and Georgido management that almost paralysed the administration of the club.

In consequences of this argument, another school of thought is of the view that the team should be given to a new management to mark a fresh beginning for the club.

Some well-placed followers of Kotoko believe that Otumfuo as the sole owner of the club will announce the new board on Saturday, or out of respect for some “senior citizens” of the club he might compare notes and defer the naming of the board for a few days.

One issue that is likely to take centre stage on Saturday’s all-important meeting is the situation of the club’s liability, especially bills run up under the Herbert Mensah administration, and how to address it.

Some people have advocated the setting up of a team of auditors by the Otumfuo himself to reconcile the accounts of the club with a view to injecting a true spirit of professionalism into Kotoko.

The likelihood of a vacuum being created in the club, especially regarding player recruitment, in the event of change in administration, has also been agitating minds. The fear is that it could lead to Kotoko missing out on the race to sign good players for the upcoming season.

A recurrent expectation that emerged from interviews with supporters of the club is that in response to the urgency to usher Kotoko into a new era of sound financial management, Otumfuo could unveil an Endowment Fund for the club along the lines of the laudable Otumfuo Educational Endowment Fund.

Meanwhile, Mr Kwabena Badu, a.k.a. Coker, a former top Kotoko and Black Stars player, has appealed to Otumfuo Osei Tutu II to let identifiable organs in the club, namely AKOPA, the Circles and Ladies club to elect their representatives onto the board. He was speaking in an interview.