Features
Name, shame, jail!
It is a month now since the curtain on the 2020/2021 Ghana Premier League (GPL) season was lowered with reports of match-fixing blighting an otherwise gleaming campaign.
The incident that tainted the season like a drop of prussic acid, was the AshantiGold SC v Inter Allies game which saw a defender of Allies – Hashmin Musah intentionally hoofing two balls into his own net – on the final day of the season.
The already-relegated Allies slumped 7-0 after the stipulated time, sending tongues wagging as to how a player could deliberately poke two goals into his own net and gleefully defending his sordid action.
Musah came on against AshantiGold with the score at 5-0 and did his own thing in the final 12 minutes.
According to the player, his action was to throw a monkey wrench in the works of an alleged match-fixing plot, adding that his team mates even congratulated him for spoiling the ‘pre-agreed’ scoreline put in place for betting reasons.
“I heard it in our hotel that a bet had been made for a correct scoreline of 5-1 against my club Inter Allies. I promised my coach that if he allows me to play from the bench, I will spoil the bet. And after the game, my team congratulated me,” Musah told Kumasi FM.
“I decided to spoil that bet because I don’t condone betting.”
Good as his intentions may be, Musah did not help matters as he rather aided in bringing the game into disrepute – hence the call by stakeholders to investigate the case – and all other games whose upshot and general play, looked all-too suspicious in the final days of the season.
It is commendable to see the Ghana Football Association (GFA) rope in the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service to prowl and institute a snake-pit inquisition into the matter and possibly smoke out the culprits.
The investigations must ensure that all other persons of interest in the said case be arrested to face the full rigours of the law.
From the grapevine, the CID is making some inroads and would in no time make some arrests, prosecute and jail the perpetrators.
Nobody must be shielded if we really are determined to save our football from slipping into a nadir of further disgrace – and humiliation.
Criminal charges
Match fixing carries criminal punishment for both the bettor or sports book that arranged the fixing as well as any players that find themselvesin the act. Punishments vary from country to country. However, any individual found guilty of fixing a sporting event runs the risk of receiving stiff criminal punishments ranging from severe fines to imprisonment.
In many jurisdictions, scandals as match-fixing are treated as second degree felony. Generally, second-degree felonies, punishable by 10 years’ imprisonment, include intentional and unlawful harm to persons, perjury, and robbery. Misdemeanors, punishable by various terms of imprisonment, include assault, theft, unlawful assembly, official corruption, and public nuisances.
The penalties associated with match fixing activities clearly demonstrate the seriousness of this behaviour.
Spectator losses
While those involved with match fixing face severe consequences if they are caught, fans suffer, too. Fans either see their team perform worse than they should or are hurt if the team later faces sanctions. The individuals most injured are the bettors or books who are victims of the fraud, who lose out on money on what was believed to be a fair bet.
Player losses
Innocent players also fall victim to their teammates’ illicit actions. As the matches are happening, the players who are giving their all and trying to win are unaware that despite their best efforts their teammates are working to ensure that they are not successful. Additionally, any sanctions handed down on a team hurt the innocent players as much as the cheaters.
Aside the jail sentences of players and officials, clubs could also suffer severe sanctions to serve as deterrent to other potential law breakers.
On July 14, 2006, a long-awaited verdict on the infamous Italian match-fixing scandal left three of the four top clubs implicated, relegated to Serie B whilst all four clubs started the following season with points deductions.
Juventus were hit hardest as they began the season at the bottom of Serie B with a 30-point penalty. They were stripped of their Serie A titles for 2004/5 and 2005/6 and barred from taking the Champions League spot that goes with the title. Fiorentina were relegated with a 12-point deduction and missed out on their Champions League spot.
Lazio also joined them in Serie B with a seven-point penalty and stripped of their UEFA Cup place. The fourth club to be implicated, AC Milan, escaped relegation but started their campaign in the top-flight with a 15-point handicap. Like the others, they were not allowed to compete in the Champions League the following season.
The penalties were imposed by a special committee set up to investigate match-fixing and interference with referees beginning in the season 2004/5. Police were listening-in to telephone conversations involving Juventus general manager Luciano Moggi as part of the investigation into a separate scandal of doping in Serie A football. What they heard was a conversation between Moggi arranging for certain matches officials to be appointed to certain games. Further investigations implicated Juventus further and also brought the other three clubs into the fray.
On March 28, 2007, Ghana football witnessed one of its most controversial and embarrassing matches ever as Nania FC, Okwawu United, Mighty Jets and Great Mariners were all involved in a Division One game.
The upshot was that the clubs were demoted and fined $20,000 each, while their players were also suspended for the rest of that season and the next campaign.
It is not too clear what the AshantiGold v Inter Allies investigations would bring forth. But whatever it is, nobody should be shielded or treated with kid’s gloves. The perpetrators must be named, shamed and jailed to serve as a disincentive to other potential criminals.
PlainTalk With JOHN VIGAH
Today, I focus on the Apostolic Church International in Finland, as I continue with my description of institutions and personalities and their accomplishments as members of the Ghanaian Diaspora in Finland.
The Apostolic Church International, Finland (or, Apostolic International Association Ry) was established in October 9, 2023. The Church in Finland has seen significant strides and accomplishments within the short time that it has been established in Finland, which must be highlighted.
History of the Church in Ghana
The Apostolic Church Ghana originated from the 1904–1905 Welsh revival, officially established in Ghana (then called Gold Coast) in 1935 following connections between a local prayer group in Asamankese (a town in southern Ghana), led by Peter Newman Anim, and the Apostolic Church, UK. There were historical splits in 1939 and 1953, but the Apostolic Church attained autonomy in 1985.
Today, the Church is headquartered in Accra. Last year (2025), it dedicated its new 10-storey headquarters, “The Apostolic Church Tower,” in Frafraha, Adenta West in Accra.
Activities of the Apostolic Church in Finland
The Apostolic Church in Finland conducts church service on Sundays. The service starts at 11a.m. in the morning and closes by 1 p.m. in the afternoon. There are no other activities during other days for now.
The Minister in charge of the church in Finland is also the Area Head of Italy Area. He is Pastor Daniel Kofi Addison who is the new Italy Area Head, and has just been transferred from UK South Area to Italy Area during the just-ended Council Meeting in March this year. Italy Area comprises Italy, which has 13 Assemblies, Germany, one Assembly, and Finland, one Assembly.
Elder Ebenezer Amoaning-Coffie is the Presiding Elder in charge of the Assembly in Finland. A Presiding Elder is responsible for day to day activities of the church (Assembly) and reports to the District Pastor, or in the absence of the District Pastor, reports to the Area Head.
Achievements
The Apostolic Church International, Finland was officially registered under the Finnish Law, guaranteeing freedom of worship and providing legal foundation for future growth. The church service is conducted in both English and Twi.
The church opens its doors to all people of every nation, especially Ghanaians who are in Finland and other African nationals. Now, the membership comprises Ghanaians, Nigerians and Sierra Leoneans.
The Church and the Ghanaian migrant community in Finland
The Apostolic Church in Finland plays a prominent role as a religious group that serves Ghanaian migrants and others in the Finnish society.
Thus, the Apostolic 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.
Elder Amoaning-Coffie said that the main and primary aim of the church is to bring people closer to God. “We aim to win souls for Christ. We aim to preach the gospel to the world. By propagating the gospel to the people, we are hopeful that they will turn away from any ungodly ways and be good individuals in the community and in society in general”, he stated.
He said that everything is going well so far. A key challenge, however, is how to get more members especially the youth. As a new Assembly, we are in need of instrumentalists, for example. We pray to God Almighty to help us do His work, the Elder disclosed.
Integration
By its activities, the Apostolic 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 in Finland.
As I mentioned some time ago, the role of migrant associations and groups such as the Apostolic 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!
With Dr Perpetual Crentsil
The landscape of the Ghanaian palate is shifting, and not necessarily for the better. In our bustling urban centres, from the streets of Accra to the suburbs of Kumasi, a quiet culinary revolution is taking place; one where the mortar and pestle are being replaced by the pizza oven and the deep fryer. This transition from traditional staple foods like fufu, banku, akple, kenkey, tuo zaafi, and ampesi toward “continental” dishes is more than just a change in appetite; it is a reflection of a deeper social struggle with identity and prestige.
The illusion of modernity
For many, “stepping out” for a meal has become synonymous with consuming foreign cuisine. There is an unspoken social hierarchy where a bowl of Abunuabunu is relegated to the village category, while burgers, pizzas are branded as prestigious choices. We have reached a stage where we equate foreign with modern and local with primitive.
This perception is a dangerous illusion. Our traditional dishes are marvels of culinary engineering complex, nutrient-dense, and deeply rooted in our history. When we choose a processed foreign import over a meal made from local tubers or fermented maize, we are not just changing our lunch; we are eroding the indigenous knowledge attached to our local ingredients and foods.
We need to turn the consumption of indigenous grains and tubers like millet, sorghum, and plantain into a statement of self-worth and national pride.
The cultural and health erosion
Every time a local dish disappears from a restaurant menu to make room for foreign fast food, we lose a piece of our cultural fabric. Traditional Ghanaian cooking is an art that requires patience and skill. By choosing the convenience of foreign fast food, we are raising a generation that may know the taste of a pepperoni pizza but cannot identify the rich, earthy profile of Prekese or the subtle tang of well-fermented dough dishes like corn porridge, banku, etew, abolo, agidi or kamfa, and kenkey.
Furthermore, we are at the crossroads of a nutrition transition. Replacing high-fiber, indigenous crops with calorie-dense but nutrient-poor foreign fast foods is driving a rise in lifestyle diseases such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes, stroke, cancer, and liver disease. We are trading our longevity for 15-minutes convenience or unhealthy diet.
A call for culinary patriotism
It is time for us to appreciate, preserve, and promote our indigenous foods and culinary traditions. We need to be proud of our local dishes, ingredients and cooking methods, rather than relying heavily on foreign or imported foods. We must stop viewing our local delicacies as low-class and start treating our culinary heritage as the high-end gastronomy it truly is.
True sophistication does not come from imitating Western fast food; it comes from innovation and adding values to our own resources. We see glimpses of this potential in the rise of branded Sobolo and the creative use of gluten-free plantain flour in modern baking of flour-based dishes such as bread, cakes, biscuits and others. This is the path forward. We must elevate our local dishes, making them as accessible, affordable, presentable and trendy as any foreign alternative.
To the hospitality industry: Innovate or stagnate
Our hotels and high-end restaurants must lead the charge. They must stop relegating local dishes to the “traditional corner” of the buffet, and apply the same culinary finesse given to imported dishes to our Fante Fante, apapransa, aborbi tadi, fetritoto, akple, abolo, yakayeke, fufu, ampesi, kokonte, wasawasa, tubani, apapransa, mpotompoto, kelewele, aliha, brukutu, pito, and other local dishes. The industry must enhance customer experiences making eating local dishes the ultimate luxury experience for both tourists and residents alike. We must elevate the presentation of our foods by using modern plating techniques to show that a bowl of light soup can be as visually stunning as a French consommé. We need to reclaim our Ghanaian plate before it is too late.
To the policy makers: Let us encourage buying of local ingredients to promote the local food industry and economy. There should be educational programmes and talks about the nutritional and cultural benefits of local foods so that people understand their value.
We need to encourage serving traditional dishes at school programmes, parties, and celebrations instead of only fast foods,
To the Youth: Let us value and appreciate our traditional dishes instead of always choosing foreign foods. There must be balance in our choice of local and foreign dishes. Confidence in our culture encourages others to respect it too. Our local dishes can also be promoted by sharing pictures, recipes, and videos on platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp to make them attractive and trendy.
Young citizens must learn from their parents and elders how to prepare local meals to keep the knowledge and cultural relevance alive. Local dishes can be modernised to appeal to younger generations and tourists.
Conclusion
We cannot afford to trade our heritage for foreign cuisines which are gaining grounds across the country at an alarming rate. We must disabuse our minds of the perception that anything foreign or imported is better than those locally made. Our health, economy, and identity are tied to the soil. It is time to stop apologising for our local flavours and start celebrating them. It is possible to embrace modernity without losing ourselves and our cultural identity. Let us make the Ghanaian kitchen the heart of our modern identity once again.
By: Marilyn Gadogbe
