Features
GOOD NEWS FOR FOOTBALL FANS – C K GYAMFI LEFT AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY! By CAMERON DUODU
When I became editor of the Ghana edition of Drum magazine in the early 1960s, I used to double as the paper’s main Sports Writer.
My pen name – a tongue-in-cheek nomenclature if ever one existed – was Kokooase Adowa [Duiker Found Under The Cocoa Trees]! I am sure this had something to do, subliminally, with the fact that I had long, thin legs as a child, and that could run so fast on errands for my elders that one of them renamed me “Motor!”
Anyway, in the guise of Kokooase Adowa, I once visited the Black Star camp when the national team was preparing for a match with another African country. As soon as the team’s glamorous right-winger, the late, inimitable Baba Yara, saw me, he launched an attack on me for something I had written about him in Drum:
“You said in your report that I should use my left foot every now and then, but that’s precisely what I did in that match! Maybe you didn’t watch the match closely?” Yara charged.
The Black Star player-coach, C K Gyamfi, intervened at once to forestall an argument between myself and his most precious possession.
“What he was implying, in saying that, “Gyamfi explained, “is that he knows you’re an ambidextrous forward, but that your natural instinct is to use your right foot more often than your left. You, of course, can’t notice that you’re doing that, because your whole mind would be on the game as a whole and not on individual moves you might or might not make.
“There are some criticisms that are made of us as players from the point of view of an admirer, not that of a critic. You have to read an article carefully before you can detect such nuances. For instance, in that same article that you’re cheesed up, about, he remarked that a ball I had shot at goal would have earned us a goal had I passed it to someone else better placed than me!
“Now that’s a serious criticism to be levelled against a player-coach, who, after all, is in charge of strategy and should set a good example to his players.. But he added that he wondered why “Gyamfi of all people” should have done that! In saying that, he was revealing so0mething about me, which was that he expected me, with all my intelligence, to make an impeccable decision about what to do whenever I got the ball! You can’t call that a ‘criticism’!”
My head swelled when Gyamfi defended me like that. But Baba Yara, who had a very sharp wit, immediately retorted that “What he did is like when a Fulani man wants to punish you: he will hit you, but then immediately bend down to breathe air onto the stricken spot, so that the blow wouldn’t hurt you too much!”
Everyone laughed. And the tension which was about to arise between me and the players was instantly dissolved. Gyamfi, as the players’ protector, had defused a situation that could have ignited into hostility by the players towards me. This, of course, would have been reflected in my next report on the team’s performance. Yet football players long for adulation, and hostile criticism against them gets to them all too easily.
The intercession by Gyamfi in the threatening altercation between me and Baba Yara revealed to me that Gyamfi wasn’t just simply a very good player who had risen to become the national coach, but also, that he was a first-class psychologist and an expert manager of men’s egos. He had saved me from the tongue of Baba Yara, but at the same time, he had subtly taught Yara something about the delicate art of cultivating diplomatic relations between footballers and sports writers.
Indeed, so broad was Gyamfi’s intellect that his coaching method was total – he took charge of the players’ sensitivities, whilst, at the same time, exacting the best physical and mental performance from them. In other words, he was a coach whose qualities comprised both intellectual depth and technical prowess – a ‘Mourinho’ before his time; an Alex Ferguson who didn’t allow the results of his man-management skills to be scuppered by a prickly personality.
I recall these things about “C K” because I am in the very happy position of having been given a sneak preview of the Autobiography Gyamfi left behind when he passed on 2 September 2015. Apparently, C K had been painfully putting down his recollections of his long, illustrious football career, during his retirement and even when was enfeebled by illness. He was fortunate enough to befriend by a very young student called Fiifi Anaman, who, as it happened, was a “football enthusiast’s football enthusiast.”
Despite the half a century of years that constituted the age-gap between the two men, they developed a rapport which enabled “C K” to entrust what he had written to Fiifi, to enable him to “ghostwrite” the fantastic Autobiography that is about to be published by that indefatigable and shrewd Publisher, Fred Labi, proprietor of of Digibooks.
Entitled “Black Star: The Autobiography of C K Gyamfi”, the book is certain to become an instant best-seller when it appears in our bookshops in a few weeks time – hopefully, before the 5th anniversary of Gyamfi’s passing.
It makes for enchanting reading. We learn all about Gyamfi’s beginnings as a footballer in junior and senior school. His crawl from club to club until he arrived at Kumase Asante Kotoko, to attain national stardom alongside James Agyei, Kwaku Duah and others; how he got disaffected with Kotoko but instead of merely leaving the club, formed his own team to contest – dangerously – for local popularity, against Kotoko, in Kotoko’s own home-base – Kumase.
And so on and so forth until – he became the national coach of the Black Stars, and won the African Cup of Nation three times
for Ghana!
I can’t wait for a copy of the printed book. Can you?
Not if you are a real football fan – say I!
Conflict at work is more common than you might think. According to 2022 research by The Myers-Briggs Company, more than a third of the workforce reports dealing with conflict often, very often, or all the time in the workplace. The same report found that managers spend an average of four hours per week dealing with conflict, and nearly 25 per cent of people think their managers handle conflict poorly or very poorly.
Addressing a dispute might feel tense or awkward, but resolving the conflict is typically well worth it in the long run. Whether you’re trying to mediate conflict between colleagues or are directly involved, here are seven steps you can take to manage workplace conflict.
1. Don’t put it off
Facing conflict head-on is hard. However, waiting too long to address it can negatively impact your emotional well-being, focus, and the entire office environment. If you’re feeling angry, letting that emotion fester can also escalate it over time. This can make you less responsive to other points of view and make it harder to resolve the issue.
The sooner you can address the conflict, the better it will be for you, the person you disagree with, and your entire team.
2. Learn all you can about the problem
It’s important to determine the type of conflict you’re dealing with. Begin by considering the cause of the conflict. For example, ask yourself whether someone said something that upset you or if you have emotions of anger and resentment that stemmed from something that happened.
Then try to identify if it’s a task, relationship, value, or team conflict. Once you know what type of conflict it is, you can work to resolve it with specific tactics for that situation.
If you skip this step, you may waste time or escalate the situation further by trying to address issues irrelevant to the real conflict.
3. Actively listen
Listen attentively when people share their side of the story. Active listening is one of the most valuable professional skills you can possess. This type of listening involves not only hearing what the other person is saying but also listening to understand their point of view.
No matter your role in conflict, it’s easy to begin sharing your opinion with little regard for the other people involved. However, it’s important to learn about all sides of a disagreement to make well-informed decisions before drawing conclusions.
To reach a resolution, you must step back and prioritize listening over talking. Ultimately, that will encourage the other person to do the same when it’s your turn to speak. –source: betterup.com
Today, I focus on the Temple Of Praise Ministries International (TOP Church) in Helsinki, as I continue my description of personalities or institutions and their accomplishments as members of the Ghanaian Diaspora in Finland.
The TOP Church in Finland has seen significant strides and accomplishments that must be made known to the public. 
Some history
The Church was established in Finland in September 2016. Since its inception, it has steadily grown both spiritually and numerically, by the grace of God, as disclosed to me by Mr Matthew Anini Twumasi, the Presiding Elder of TOP’s branch in Finland. The TOP Church has other branches across Africa, Europe, and America.
The Church in Finland was founded with a vision to create a welcoming and dynamic community where people could experience God’s love and grace (see, www.topchurchfinland.org). According to Presiding Elder Matthew, the TOP Church operates within a unique environment where Christianity coexists with what is seen as a largely secular society.
Despite this, he submits, there are significant opportunities for outreach, unity, and demonstrating the love of Christ through service and community engagement.
Activities
Church services at the TOP Church are typically held on Sundays for the main worship. In addition, there are mid-week prayer sessions, Saturday prayer services, and a half-night service held on the last Friday of every month. “We also organise quarterly programs”, Elder Matthew added.
His impression of the Church so far has been positive. “It is a vibrant and welcoming community where members are committed to worship, fellowship, and supporting one another in faith”, he stated.
In sum, Elder Matthew said the Church continues to grow by God’s grace. “We remain hopeful and committed to spreading the Gospel, strengthening the faith of our members, and making a positive impact in society”, he continued.
Achievements
The TOP Church has a number of achievements and achievements. Some of the strengths include strong community bonds, cultural diversity, and deep commitment to spiritual growth.
I also remember that during the COVID-19 period, I heard that the TOP Church was one such bodies that hugely supported its members and others to cope with the situation.
According to Elder Matthew, the challenges facing the church include “adapting to cultural differences, engaging the younger generation, expanding outreach in a secular society, and securing a permanent place of worship”.
Role in the Ghanaian community in Finland
The TOP Church plays a prominent role as a religious group that serves Ghanaian migrants and others in the Finnish society.
Thus, the TOP Church is a religious body for Ghanaian migrants in Finland and other nationalities who want to worship with them for diversity and better intercultural and multicultural understanding.
The Church also has mechanisms in place to support its members who are bereaved as a way to commiserate with them in times of death and funerals.
The Ghanaian community has played a vital role in the growth of the Church. Their strong sense of fellowship, dedication to worship, and active participation have helped build a solid foundation and attract others to the ministry, according to Elder Matthew.
Integration
By its activities, the TOP Church is helping to ensure integration of its members well into the Finish society.
This is important since social interaction and citizens’ well-being are an important part of the integration process.
The role of migrant associations and groups such as TOP Church acting as bridge-builders for the integration and inclusion of migrants through participation in the decision making process and by acting as a representative voice is highly appreciated in Finland. Thank you!
GHANA MATTERS column appears fortnightly. Written in simple, layman’s terms, it concentrates on matters about Ghana and beyond. It focuses on everyday life issues relating to the social, cultural, economic, religious, political, health, sports, youth, gender, etc. It strives to remind us all that Ghana comes first. The column also takes a candid look at the meanings and repercussions of our actions, especially those things we take for granted or even ignore. There are key Ghanaian values we should uphold rather than disregard with impunity. We should not overlook the obvious. We need to search for the hidden or deeply embedded values and try to project them.
With Dr Perpetual Crentsil
