Ackah Anthony And Co, Akwaaba

As I wrote last week as a footnote to one of my articles, I thank God that after a very listless tenure, Ebo Quansah succumbed to better judgment and decided to let Ackah Anthony take over as the new President of the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG).

I say the tenure of Ebo Quansah was listless because if atop his list of achievements as SWAG President, is his submission that he was able to invite President Kufuor and Otumfuor to SWAG Awards Nights, then I guess I have every right to hit the bulls eye and say that Ebo Quansah left a record that is not worth cataloguing.

As for the other issues of how TV?s and fridges as well as other movable properties belonging to the Association have vanished from the Club House and are being held hostage in the homes of certain individuals, I would not delve deep into such matters because the new executives want to let bygones be bygones.

Ackah Anthony, who used to be a right hand man of Ebo Quansah, is now in the saddle and it is hoped that his association with Ebo Quansah would not make him aspire to making his ability to invite dignitaries to SWAG Awards Nights, his primary goal.

SWAG, which is supposed to be the umbrella body of people like me (i.e. sports writers) has lost its verve and has seen the Association wither over the years.

People may not like the ?stubborn? stance Joe Aggrey took against E.T. Mensah in the days when the former was the president of SWAG and the latter was the minister in charge of sports but that is how it ought to be.

It is not about pursuing a parochial (then again who determines what is parochial and what is not) agenda as it is taking a principled position and defending it to the hilt. And as far as I am concerned, that is what Joe Aggrey sought to do and which in no small way resulted in his being voted Journalist of The Year sometime in the late 90?s.

Forget about the fact that as Deputy Minister in charge of sports, Joe Aggrey failed miserably and could not implement one policy that he used to espouse as a sports writer.

The fact still remains that as a sports writer he did what was to be done nobody can fault him for that.

At least in the days of Joe Aggrey, one could feel SWAG vibrate.

Of course, the Ken Bediakos and the Oheneba Charles?s kept the Association very vibrant in their time.

I want to skip the period of Ebo Quansah because every objective mind knows that it was the period that SWAG suffocated and died.

SWAG became moribund under Ebo Quansah?s presidency and that is a fact.

Maybe the only thing that Ebo Quansah would be remembered for, is the fact that he is the only SWAG President to have turned the Association?s Club House into his home for more than four years without paying a penny for occupying the place.

Some say Ackah Anthony staged a palace coup to get rid of Ebo Quansah and if that is the case so be it.

What is important is the fact that Ebo Quansah has ?stepped aside? and has allowed Ackah Anthony to take over the mantle of leadership.

What Ackah Anthony ought to have foremost on his mind day and night is the fact that a lot would be expected from him and his team.

SWAG is dead and the new team has an arduous task of not only resurrecting the Association but more importantly, giving it a new lease of life that would see it live for years to come.

SWAG has proven over the years that once it packages itself well it has the capacity to attract a lot of sponsorship and Ackah Anthony and his team must not only be interested in sponsorship for the Awards Night celebrations, but must be interested in attracting sponsorship that would help the Association build the capacity of its members in every sense of the word.

Apart from local capacity building (e.g. quarterly refresher courses), there are lots of universities all over the world that have made sports a key aspect of their academic curriculum and an attractive SWAG should be able to get funding for sports writers with potential to travel abroad and gain further insight into various aspects of sports.

There must also be a conscious effort not to limit the activities of the Association to only football and boxing.

Sporting disciplines abound in the country but the tilt towards football in particular and boxing to some extent, is painting a picture of a country that knows about only football and boxing.

Once sports writers specialize in reporting on the so-called lesser known sporting disciplines, it won?t be long before we become a comprehensive sporting nation.

Once Ebo Quansah vacates the Club House, and hands over the keys, the place should be given a befitting facelift.

The agenda must be to turn the Club House into a first class sporting ?joint? where sporting minds can meet and brainstorm over a wide range of sporting issues.

It should not be difficult to fit the place with a satellite dish and huge screens so that sporting fans can troop in and watch their choice sporting disciplines for a fee.

For sure, the place must have an internet facility that would allow members of the Association and patron?s alike access the world wide web. For non-members, the facility must be made available to them for a fee.

SWAG can also institute its version of the meet-the-press series where active players in the sporting world can interact with not only sports writers but with the general sporting public.

Of course, SWAG?s core function of keeping the issues alive must feature prominently on the agenda of the new executives so that we praise those who have to be praised and criticize those who deserve to be criticized all in the interest of growing sports in Ghana.

Ackah Anthony, let it not be said after your tenure that had the Association known, it would have maintained Ebo Quansah as president.

Ackah Anthony and co akwaaba and I hope and pray you succeed.

Views expressed by the author(s) do not necessarily reflect those of GhanaHomePage.