Ghana: I’ll Strip Takyi Arhin Naked – Kofi Manu

David Tagoe

1 July 2011

Last Monday’s attempt to throw mud at three aspiring Ghana Football Association (GFA) Executive Committee candidates by a former management member of BA Stars, Takyi Arhin, continues to attract caustic responses from those he described as “errand boys” who should be not be voted for, since their membership on the committee would not do Ghana football any good.

One of the candidates, Randy Abbey, said he would not respond, as that would mean elevating the reasoning of Takyi Arhin, but succinctly described the comments by Takyi Arhin as “comments from a weak mind”, while Samuel Oduro Nyarko, who has rich experience in football administration under his belt, told Takyi Arhin in no uncertain terms that his experience in football administration cannot be scorned by a personality like him.

On Thursday, Kofi Manu, the last of the trio to respond to Takyi Arhin, was verbally ruthless with his response, promising a three-part response to Takyi Arhin on all radio stations where he reportedly made the comments.

In the three-part response, Kofi Manu has given the assurance that he would strip Takyi Arhin totally naked for all to know his true colours.

In the first of the three-part response on Asempa FM, Kofi Manu described Takyi Arhin as a thief steeped in football-related crimes, citing his connivance with other people to make money at the expense of Aduana Stars.

According to him, his instrumentality in ensuring that the attempt was botched was what had given Takyi Arhin the unhealthy audacity to jump from one radio station to the other denigrating him.

Describing as laughable Takyi Arhin’s comments, Kofi Manu asserted, “I’ll prefer selling my conscience to get money to stealing someone’s money.”

Quoting article 32 (3) of the GFA regulations on floating players, Manu noted that in the transfer of a floating player, payment of the transfer fee does not arise at all, but Takyi Arhin, with the connivance of Ernest Osei Boakye and Madam Leticia Sarpong, who claimed ownership of the player, behaved in a manner that flew in the face of that article, which if they had succeeded in doing, would have earned them GH ¢5,000 from Aduana Stars.

According to him, they threatened the withdrawal of the player if the owner of Aduana Stars failed to pay the money after receiving the club’s share from the Globacom sponsorship fee.

“I told Osagyefo Agyemang Badu not to pay the money, and he listened to me. Since that day, I’ve become a sworn enemy of Takyi Arhin, and he goes about calling me names.

“I’ve built an image for myself. I don’t toy with my integrity, so I couldn’t connive with him to steal money, and maybe that is why I’m poor, but poverty is no crime as stealing is.

“I didn’t sack Takyi Arhin from Aduana Stars. It was his character that got him out of the club.

“If he wants to speak on radio, he should not engage in insults,” he urged Takyi Arhin.

Kofi Manu argued that he was a Ghanaian who can contest any election he wants, so nobody, and for that matter, Takyi Arhin, cannot bar him from contesting an election.

“When things were going wrong in Ghana football, I stood against them. But in the last few years, we’ve qualified for the World Cup twice, the GFA has its own secretariat, our national team has sponsorship from corporate institutions. These are good things the current administration has done, and I’ve seen them all, which is why I’m convinced about the good work it has done, and decided to contest and be part of the GFA.

“I’m contesting to defend the football association. Maybe, Takyi Arhin is yet to see the good work done so far.”

“If he calls me an errand boy, and on that basis I should not be voted for, I want him to know that even the president of the country is our errand boy. Takyi Arhin does not understand the word.

“I’ve made it my intention not to discuss people on radio, but he has pushed me to do so today. I promise to strip Takyi Arhin naked,” he concluded.

AllAfrica – All the Time