How The Web Saved Herbert Mensah

On Saturday, March 17, the Kotoko family met at the National House of Chiefs in Kumasi. Ordinarily, the meeting would only have been worth a few paragraphs in the newspapers, but because Herbert Mensah, the club chairman was expected to face hostility, the media and other Kotoko stakeholders were there in full force.

It was an arena where Chairman Mensah matched his wits against the best his opponents could offer. He took the meeting like a game played with certain rigid rules where the better wins and Herbert Mensah was determined to be the better player. No wonder he exhibited knowledge about straight overall planning and tactics.

At a signal from the Otumfuo for him to give account of his stewardship, he rose to his feet and approached the gathering with confidence. He studied their faces, trying to evaluate the impression he was making on them. He spoke very quietly and sincerely as his eyes moved slowly across the faces of the gathering. At a point he asked permission from the Otumfuo to show an exhibit. Herbert Mensah had already had a screen positioned so the stakeholders could see the show clearly. A projector was turned on and the screen came to life. For the next few minutes, there was not a sound to be heard in the room. They watched Kotoko live on the Internet, a novelty in Kotoko club administration, and he knew it was having an effect on the stakeholders. After browsing Kotoko on the Internet, his opponents became frantic, certain that they had lost their case.

Earlier on, the charismatic chairman had unfolded a sponsorship deal worth about half a billion cedis the details of which would be disclosed in April. Mailsports can however reveal that the players would be provided with four pairs of boots each, a tracksuit, and thirty million cedis out of the package would go for the players' salaries.

Chairman Mensah was quick and candid to announce that full payments have not been made on the new players. For example a down payment of seventy-five million cedis out of the brokered deal has been paid on Nana Frimpong, ace defender and Dan Acquah of RTU has also cost Kotoko fifty million cedis.

Amidst cheers, he said he intends to put Kotoko on the structure, class and financial standing of European clubs, adding, "as at now Kotoko pays a winning bonus of half a million cedis after every match." He beseeched all the organs of the club to help in cash or kind for the realisation of the Kotoko dream.