Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom
The Progressive People’s Party’s (PPP) presidential candidate Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom is set to spark a major debate after his comments that the nation does not need a Youth and Sports Ministry, adding that he would scrap the Ministry should he become President of Ghana.
Dr. Nduom says he is not downplaying the sector’s importance but is looking forward to using a totally different approach to sports development. “I don’t think it’s necessary. I believe that you should have only sports associations to run sports. If you want an athletics association it should be there and if you want a governing body there should be one but it should be voluntary,” he told Joy Sports.
Nduom thinks that the government should provide the facilities, sponsorship and incentives that will allow other people to put money into sports. “If as I am sponsoring a football team and as I am interested in building a sports facility and there are tax incentives, I will speed up my activities so that the people in my area will have a good sports facility to use and to benefit from,” he added.
The Youth and Sports Ministry has been in existence for decades and has the mandate of overseeing the development and promotion of sports. The ministry has occasionally undergone major redefinitions of its functions since Ghana’s independence in 1957.
One restructuring took place in 1978 when the ministry, then headed by the Commissioner for Sports, became strictly responsible for sports development and administration.
There have also been times when the Ministry has merged with others. Under ex-President Kufuor’s administration, for example, the Youth and Sports Ministry merged with Education and Science.
The Ministry has also been considered one of the least stable seats for political appointees, headed by four different Ministers in the last four years.
Alhaji Mubarak Muntaka was replaced by Alhaji Pelpuo in 2009. A year later, Akua Sena Dansua was appointed, holding the post until last year, when she was succeeded by the current Minister, Clement Kofi Humado.