Kurt Okraku
Ghana Football Association (GFA) President Kurt Okraku is teaming up with the Youth & Sports Ministry to assist the stranded Ghanaians footballers in Ethiopia and other parts of Africa to return home.
The move was in response to pleas by many Ghanaian players, particularly in the Ethiopian league, which has been truncated due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Early this week, players on the continent appealed to government to offer them travel assistance to enable them to return home following closures of the borders.
Videos of the stranded players have emerged where they stated that they have spent all their cash on food and are facing imminent ejections from their various places due to the cancellation of their respective leagues.
Consequently, Kurt Okraku has announced that his outfit and the Sports Ministry were collaborating to assist the footballers return home.
“I have just taken notice of a video of some Ghanaian footballers who seem to be stranded in Ethiopia. I’m in contact with Hon. Issac Kwame Asiamah (Sports Minister) who has directed that contact be made with the boys and the Ghana Embassy in Ethiopia…
“All hands on deck at the moment to offer every support to our brothers…..
“Soon,….this too shall pass!,” Kurt wrote on Facebook.
Meanwhile, Ghana’s Ambassador to Ethiopia, Mrs. Amma A. Twum-Amoah, has also responded to the players’ cries after several attempts.
The players—led by former Black Stars defender Lee Addy and former Kotoko goalkeeper Muntari Tagoe—have been left stranded since March.
Indications are that the players went to the Ghanaian consulate in Ethiopia, where they were asked to pay $2,000 to be airlifted by a cargo plane to Accra.
“We have received a call from the GFA after our video. We’ve delivered our details and the ambassador’s number to them,” Addy told OTEC FM.
“The ambassador also called and explained things to us and we’ve responded to her. We are waiting for what will happen next,” he added.
By Kofi Owusu Aduonum