Bring hooligans to justice –Asantehene

The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has impressed upon the Ghana Football association (GFA) and the Professional League Board (PLB) to strive to mete out appropriate and timely sanctions to those caught engaging in acts of hooliganism to ensure safety at the various Football stadia in the country.

He said the re-current acts of hooliganism being experienced at the various stadiums could be reduced to the barest minimum if instant justice were meted out to the culprits.

The Asantehene indicated that failure to deal appropriately with offenders and timely, creates the impression that the sports authorities cared less about such incidence, a development that encouraged others to also engage in nefarious activities.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu said football was governed by rules and it was therefore important that stakeholders upheld the laws of the game to enhance discipline and excitement in the League.

The Asantehene's speech was read on his behalf at this year’s Glo- Premier League Awards ceremony held at the Golden Tulip in Kumasi.

The event, the first to be held outside the national capital- Accra, since its inception seven years ago, was designed to honor players, coaches, club administrators and officials, individuals and corporate institutions for their contributions in diverse ways towards the success of the League.

The Asantehene bemoaned the extend to how the excitement in the local League was gradually waning, a situation he attributed to exodus of capable players, acts of indiscipline and lack of sponsorship.

He said it was time that the sports authorities evolved pragmatic policies and programs to bring back the glory days of the league that would encourage the spectators and fans to patronize such matches.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu was not happy at the stage at which some players leave, especially at their youthful stages to seek for greener pastures abroad, pointing out that since a majority of them were not ripe for the challenges abroad, such players often get frustrated in the long-term and derail their progress.

"The authorities should therefore work harder to retain those players in the system and ensure they matured before leaving for greener pastures.

Kwesi Nyantakyi, President of the GFA commended the Award winners for their efforts in the season.**