You are here: HomeNews2020 09 29Article 1072177

Sports News of Tuesday, 29 September 2020

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

4 times Kotoko CEO Nana Yaw Amponsah stirred controversies with his statements

Newly appointed Asante Kotoko Chief Executive Officer, Nana Yaw Amponsah, has raised the expectations of the Porcupine family after assuming office two weeks ago.

Nana Yaw Amponsah was unveiled as the CEO of Asante Kotoko on Friday, August 7 at the Sports Hotel in Kumasi.

He has made several ‘controversial’ statements along the line that became major subjects for discussions and dominated the media space for weeks.

Today, GhanaWeb's Joel Eshun has compiled five of Nana Yaw Amponsah's statements which stoked controversies since assuming office in August.

Kotoko CEO job bigger than GFA presidency:

During his unveiling ceremony at the Sports Hotel in Kumasi, Nana Yaw Amponsah who contested in the 2019 Ghana Football Association Presidential elections but lost to Kurt Okraku claimed that his current position is bigger than that of the GFA boss.

“I say Asante Kotoko; no disrespect to the Ghana Football Association presidential position that I aspired to occupy, Kotoko for me is the biggest of the two positions,” he said.

Kotoko is bigger than NPP, NDC:

At the same ceremony, he sounded more controversial when he said that Asante Kotoko is bigger than the National Democratic Congress and the New Patriotic Party who have been ruling the country since 1992.

"Asante Kotoko is the biggest brand in Ghana [and] not even a Political party can be compared to this club. None of the two biggest Political parties in Ghana can be compared to Kotoko."

We will brand Kotoko players as celebrities:

One of the constant things Nana Yaw Amponsah has hammered on after assuming his new role is to brand Asante Kotoko in a way that will make prospective sponsors fall on them.

In his latest interview on Kumasi based Opemsuo 104.7 FM, he stated that: “If a Kumawood actor is tagged as a celebrity, why can’t a Kotoko player have the same tag? Our players must get an endorsement from big brands."

“My management is determined to brand Kotoko players to be celebrities just like movie stars and musicians, and this means that, where they live, where they eat and their outfits must evolve."

My management members can close their eyes and still perform:

Finally, he likened his management team to the Galacticos of Real Madrid and added that he chose competent people who can close their eyes and still perform to the best of their abilities.

Unveiling his management team at the Sports Hotel in Kumasi, Nana Yaw Amponsah said: “There’s no pressure at all, if you are prepared for the job, you go in and you do it,” Kotoko’s CEO said.

He continued, “What I have realized in our jurisdiction is that people look for positions without building capacity for it; so they get into the job and they now want to learn on the job. That’s not how I was styled that is why we’ve brought on people who are comfortable, who can close their eyes and perform in a second.”