Jawula For Sports Ministry?

It is now almost certain that by the end of the twenty-eight days of February, the Chief Executive of Ghana President J. A Kufuor will announce a new minister for the beleaguered Youth and Sports Ministry. And this may not come alone, there could be a shift or two from among the serving ministers.

But one thing is certain. The political overlords will not indulge in any uninformed hasty reshuffle because some people desire change.

A "Network Herald" 2-in-2 has deduced that former chairman of the Ghana Football Association, Alhaji Nuredene Jawula whose parliamentary ambitions seem to have suffered a jolt will most surely pair up with deputy Minister Joe Aggrey at the Youth and Sports Ministry.

According to reliable insiders with close ears to the presidency, President Kufuor himself a keen sports fan, has been doing some serious thinking about sports generally and the apparent chasm existing between the incumbent minister, the media and the sporting fraternity.

For now however, the searchlight seem fixed on the Alhaji. His biggest plus appears to be his long association with Ghana sports and his background as an administrator. And with a media goodwill that saw him transcend two terms in the very ''hot'' GFA seat, he is perceived a better option to Minister Edward Osei-Kwaku (MP) who seems to be having a lot of bad press.One section of the think-tankers was emphatic ''It is generally agreed that Alhaji Jawula is better qualified to change the fortunes of the ministry considering public opinion which heavily goes against the present minister.''

Alhaji Jawula’s appointment is also intended to bridge the much-talked about North- South divide. Proponents of the constitutional ethnic balance theory constantly criticise the Kufuor government for the absence of persons with northern ancestry in Cabinet positions. But Jawula may be two times lucky-he hails from the north and possesses a Ga leaning.

A staunch supporter of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) since the Busia regime, his work as a civil servant always compelled him to take a back-stage.

Minister Osei-Kwaku who has been severally criticised by sections of the Ghanaian sporting media may go back to the Office of the President, where he was until his appointment as a minister for Youth and Sports. His alleged long-standing dispute with his deputy has been cited as one of the set backs in his administration and the work of the ministry.

Although some have praised him for his attention to youth development evident in his giving out funds to several youth centres in the country, the minister’s over all performance at the ministry has to many, including even members of his party, not been satisfactory and therefore needs to be replaced if the sector is to move forward.

The next concern of the President will be the Tourism Ministry which will break its unintended marriage to the Private Sector Development Ministry whose minister Kwamena Bartels (MP) had as well been suggested as a replacement for the very hard working Local Government and Rural Development Minister Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu. That move has since been stalled.

The next most important concern of the president is the vacancy created by the very hard working John Achuliwor whose death our source says really jolted the president. According to the Network Herald 2-in-2, the presidency is waiting for the final funeral rights of the late former MP to name Telecommunications businessman David Poku, the new deputy Minister for Communications. Most ministers talked to were however of the opinion that they have met their targets but suggested that the president knows best since '' we all occupy our positions courtesy his own desires.''