President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kurt Okraku, has responded to criticism from Manhyia South MP Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah over the state of pitches in the country.
In an interview on Citi FM’s current affairs show, Eyewitness News, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah raised concerns about the condition of some AstroTurf facilities and the challenges facing football clubs that rely on them.
Responding to the comments, the GFA President questioned the MP’s knowledge of football and said he should have engaged the Association privately.
“Why would an MP who knows nothing about football think he is an expert and criticise the work football people are doing?” he asked.
He said the MP could have contacted the GFA to understand the situation and offer support rather than criticising its work publicly.
“He could have called us privately, asked what was happening, and offered whatever support he could,” he said.
Kurt Okraku also pointed to the state of football infrastructure in the MP’s constituency, saying young people lack proper facilities to play the sport.
“When I go to his constituency, I see underdevelopment, youth unemployment, and bad AstroTurf pitches. I see young boys and girls who don’t have proper pitches to play football,” he said
“It is not my responsibility to come out publicly and criticise him. I would rather reach out to him directly,” he added.
The GFA President also questioned whether the high cost of using AstroTurf pitches by Colts clubs should itself be a concern for the MP.
“Shouldn’t the fact that Colts football clubs pay huge amounts to play on AstroTurf pitches be a major concern to the MP?” he asked.
