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Opinions of Saturday, 9 June 2018

Columnist: Katey Caesar

The sad end of an era in our football

Kwesi Nyantakyi is under investigation for using the President's name to defraud potential investors Kwesi Nyantakyi is under investigation for using the President's name to defraud potential investors

This is an unfortunate end for a man who had a very promising career. The magnitude of atrocities couldn't be ignored, but he really brought us some moments.

As the saying goes truth stands, and by no means will a man survive with an integrity which is as soiled as that of Nyantakyi's.

Kwesi was climbing a ladder of greatness. He was doing well with his ambitions until we all saw how much the football system started to suffer from both his actions and his inactions.

The press called for openness, those who pushed him up the ladder made appeals for him to be as transparent. But no, the 'boys' around him who had other interests urged him on to continue to rig the system.

On all these fronts, one way he found his way around was his constant call for evidence from whoever is calling him to order. Now He couldn't be penetrated anymore because he had built a wall around himself. Made changes in the laws so that he became an embodiment of power in our football.

All the scandals, allegations and accusations levelled against him, the biggest which was the Brazil 2014 world cup scandal were easily rebuffed by his cunning ways of dealing with things.

All of us marvelled at the way with which he easily got away and one of the legends of our game, rev. Osei Kofi was as emphatic in saying that the Nyantakyi he knew had completely transformed into something else. But it was only a matter of time, as one journalist took up the mantle to ensure that his smartness is outsmarted.

There were several attempts to get out of this one too, but the evidence of this accusations had caught up with him. At the height of the tension in this country, a senior journalist Michael Oti wrote a short but very profound comment on his wall, and one thing that really struck me was that if Mr. Nyantakyi survives this, then nothing can hurt him anymore. It was just going to be a matter of time.

Now the sun has set and his deeds have caught up with him. It's a sad end of a man who had so much promise, but it is a more sad reality of why the saying goes that nothing stays hidden forever.

After all, this is the beginning of bringing back sanity into our game. We hope trust is restored but before that happens, there might have been bruises that has to heal first. The mighty oak has fallen but has fallen for the right reasons and I sincerely hope Ghana football begins to drive on the right path from now onwards.