Qatar, Here We Come

When failures come – keep going. When you feel like giving up – keep going. When people mock your idea – keep going. When challenges you face – keep going. When mistakes are made – keep going. Because perseverance just keeps going!

                                                               KEEP GOING – KATE SUMMERS

GHANA qualifies to go to Qatar at the expense of their age-old rivals, Nigeria. The scores had been a barren draw (0-0) at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi last Friday, and there was wide speculation that Nigeria’s Green Eagles would annihilate Ghana’s Black Stars at Abuja on the return match in the recently refurbished Moshood Abiola Stadium.

Aliko Dangote’s offer of $1m had restored the 60,000 capacity stadium to a high international standard. Nigerian fans were expecting a massacre for Nigeria to send Ghana home after Ghana’s heavy loss of 3-2 to unsung Comoros at AFCON 2021, hosted by Cameroon in January 2022.

The Nigerian government had ordered public institutions to shut down their offices at 1:00pm: “…There is a need to mobilise support for the Nigerian Team. Consequently, I am directed to inform you that all offices will be closed at 1:00pm on Thursday, March 29, 2022…” the official memorandum read. All hands must be on deck!

In Ghana, there were mixed feelings, and the Ghanaian fans had their hearts in their mouths throughout the game – most especially when Ghanaian radio commentators expressed doubts about the fairness of Moroccan referee Redouane Jiyed and assistants Lahsen Azgaou and Mostafa Akardad. In the match, Ghana had 34% possession while Nigeria had 66%.

Thomas Partey’s 11th minute goal brought hopes to Ghana, but which hopes were wished away with William Troost-Ekong’s penalty goal. With the 1-1 draw, Ghana gets a clean passage to Qatar, based on the “away goal” advantage.

Ghana and Nigeria have had very close relationship dating as far back as the colonial days, 1800s. Both were colonised by Britain; and there were various football competitions. In 1955, the Jalco Cup competition was won by the Gold Coast (Ghana) who used the match to spell the seven – letter word of that country N-i-g-e-r-i-a (7-0). In 1993, irate Nigerian sports fans burnt Ghana’s bus in Lagos after Black Stars had beaten Green Eagles 3-2 at Lagos.

But besides football, Ghana and Nigeria have had love-hate relations. With the attainment of Ghana’s independence and a flourishing economy, Ghana attracted many West Africans, and typically Nigerians with whom they shared a common language, English.

In 1969, Busia’s government introduced the Aliens’ Compliance Order through which millions of Nigerians were flushed back to Nigeria. In the 1980s, when Nigeria struck oil, Ghana’s economy was falling apart and Nigeria became attractive to the unemployed Ghanaian youth who flocked there in 1983, it was the turn of Nigeria to expel these undocumented Ghanaian “Agege” youth.

The one million or so “deportees” or “returnees” got locked up behind the borders which had been closed as a result of the Jerry John Rawlings’s military coup.

The violence that erupted in Abuja, resulting in the destruction of property in the Abuja Stadium reminds one of the El Salvado-Honduras “Football War” (Spanish: La Guerra del Futbol). Or “The Soccer War” or “The Hundred Hours War” on July 14, 1969, the Salvadoran military launched an attack against Honduras. On July 18, 1969, a ceasefire had been negotiated by the Organisation of American States (OAS).

It was started by a 2-leg FIFA World Cup qualifier. In the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa on June 18, 1969, Honduras won 1-0. In the second game in the capital San Salvador, Salvador won 3-0. After the match, Salvadorans were subjected to violence, with about 12,000 fleeing Honduras.

The Salvadorans accused the Honduran government of not taking any “…effective measures to punish these crimes (murder, aggression, rape, plundering and mass expulsion, which constitute genocide nor has it given assurances of indemnifications or reparations for damages caused to Salvadorans.”

El Salvador, with a population 3.7 million at that time, was 40% larger than that of Honduras with a population of 2.8 million at that time. Around 1969, more than 300,000 Salvadorans were living in Honduras. Thousands of Salvadoran labourers were expelled from Honduras. And Honduras had more than 5-times the size of El Salvador, and whereas the army strength of Salvador was 30,000 that of Honduras was 23,000.

El Salvador’s Fidel Sanchez Hernandez was supported by the United States of America, while Honduras’s Oswaldo Lopez Arellano got assistance from Nicaragua. It was the Honduran government which called on the OAS for intervention.

El Salvador, for fear of economic sanctions, agreed. Though it was only a four-day war, it took almost a decade for the final settlement, because there had been agitations over territorial (land) dispute. It was a pity when Salvadoran refugees could not find ready welcome in El Salvador. Poverty and general hardship led to the Salvadoran Civil War a decade later.

The histories need to be told for the youth to be equipped with “what went wrong,” so that they can prepare to set right the wrong of the past. CAF official, Zambian, Joseph Kabunga, died after losing consciousness, suffering from exhaustion and harassment.

Meanwhile, the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has celebrated his 78th birthday (on March 29). For him, it would be a 3-in-1 celebration; one, birthday; two, the passage of the e-levy; three, the Black Stars’ win.

In the words of Gabby Otchere-Darko, Founder of Danquah Institute, the passage of the e-levy bill should enliven the President; “Not a bad way to celebrate your 78th birthday, after flying over from Tamale. Will the Black Stars’ win be the icing on the cake?”

Ghana joins Senegal, Morocco, Cameroon and Tunisia in Qatar (2022).

Poor Nigeria will have to wait until 2026 to try their luck again!

Bravo, Coach Otto Addo of Ghana; better luck next time, Coach Augustine Eguavon of Nigeria.

Ghanaian players, keep the Aspidistra flying (Go go go high). Fans and spectators, avoid hooliganism if you should lose a match.

africanusowusu1234@gmail.com 

From Africanus Owusu-Ansah

 

 

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