Afcon 2013: Ministry to review FA cash request

The Ministry of Youth and Sport are in the process of reviewing the $8 million request by the Ghana Football Association for its impending campaign in the 2013 African Cup of Nations.

The Ghanaian public have been divided on whose side to take after the FA proposed the unprecedented amount in the quest to end the national team's trophy drought in Africa's biggest tournament.

Supersport.com sources within the Ministry indicate that the budget met negative feedback from higher-ups from the very beginning. "The minister was quite distraught at the figures when it came through by courier and email," a source tells supersport.com.

Clement Humado, Ghana's Minister for Youth and Sport, asked the FA officials to take their trip to Portugal, for Wednesday's game against Cape Verde, and then return for deliberations. In the past few days, the minister has held a series of meetings - in person or by telephone - with at least two former FA chairmen and three veteran journalists from the post-independence era.

The minister has also spoken to two former finance ministers, respectively from the ruling National Democratic Congress and the opposition New Patriotic Party. From all indications, there is the sense that the proposed monies from Ghana's football governing body will be reviewed.

However, the sticking point will be the extent to which the review will be done. "When the GFA officials return from their overseas trip, they will be asked to justify the $7.7 million, but it likely that the minister will ask them to take a workable sum that will be less."

Workable amounts, please

Supersport.com is also informed that the GFA owes the ministry $400,000, which was collected but not budgeted for at the last African Cup of Nations. FA officials went for the sum from the Sports Ministry when Black Stars players demanded an increment in pay as the team progressed in the tournament in Gabon and Equatorial.

"This amount is just one of the things that the Minister will use as a bargaining chip to force the FA to consider the amounts they are demanding," the source said.

Also, the minister is considering an action that will ask the FA to prevail on Black Stars players that since the Afcon 2013 is happening just a year after the last one, a reduction in bonuses might be financially feasible.

"Don't forget that we only went for an African Cup less than ten months ago and we took a lot of money from the state. The minister's advisers feel that it is a bit over the top for the state to pay even bigger amounts for another tournament that is happening just under a year after the last one," supersport.com source finished.

The total budget for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations stands at nearly $8 million, of which about $1,06 million is for the training camp in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates from 7-16 January next year.