Hot!
We’ve got to halt the early exits!
• Kurt Okraku – Ghana FA President
There were mixed feelings of potential accomplishment when Ghana’s national team, Black Stars, bade the nation farewell to embark for the 2022 Qatar World Cup tournament – still ongoing.
Some Ghanaians were fairly optimistic about the team’s adventure in their fourth Mundial – others were not, insisting the present Black Stars consisted of too many inexperienced players who would find the terrain too hot to handle.
Thus, essentially, many were told to manage their expectations.
What may have slightly raised the hopes of some Ghanaians was when the Stars comprehensively beat Switzerland 2-0 in their last preparatory game before departing for Qatar. Indeed, it was a compellingly magnificent performance and on the face of it, it was going to be difficult to totally write off the team at the tournament.
Ghana found itself in Group H alongside Portugal, South Korea and Uruguay. It was a tricky group though, and qualification was going to be one that deserved lots of fight, sweat, blood and sacrifice.
Question: Did the Black Stars fight hard enough? We shall come to that.
The Stars rolled off their campaign with a 2-3 loss to Portugal, a game that could have ended in a draw had the referee not gifted Cristiano Ronaldo an undeserved penalty after Mohammed Salisu’s innocuous challenge in the area. Stirring appeals from the players for the knight-of-the-whistle to consult VAR to check the authenticity of that lousy decision, fell on rocks.
It seems to be a huge plot that will never be overturned as Ronaldo proceeded to tuck it away, becoming the first player to score in five World Cup tournaments.
Spunkily, Ghana managed to put that defeat behind them, upstaging South Korea 3-2 on a frenetic night in their second game to bounce back into contention.
Ghana’s win catapulted them to second spot and needed to draw with Uruguay in the final group game to stand any chance of plucking a Round of 16 berth.
Uruguay, who had lost and drawn with Portugal and South Korea respectively, also had to chase victory against old foe Ghana with the Koreans given the more arduous hurdle of accounting for Portugal.
Believe it or not, South Korea put up a bigger-than-life performance to fetch the desired result over the Portuguese – beating them 2-1 on a memorable night to punch their way into the Round of 16 stage.
Sadly for Ghana, the Stars slumped 2-0 against Uruguay – skipper Andre Ayew having squandered a 21st minute penalty that could have galvanized the team to run their opponents rugged.
It was a revenge that never was, and many Ghanaians around the world felt the pain and anguish of being eliminated by a Luis Suarez-led side that did the unthinkable to Ghana some 12 years ago at the South Africa World Cup.
In that infamous game, Suarez callously ‘hand-volleyed’ out a goal-bound ball in the last seconds of their quarter-final game against Ghana for a penalty that forward Asamoah Gyan would go ahead to blow off.
An ensuing penalty shoot-out after extra-time did not also favour Ghana as the Stars were denied the glory of becoming the first African team to make it to the last-four berth of the World Cup.
It is the reason Ghanaians are saddened by the fact that yet again, Uruguay were responsible for their exit at the World Cup. Perhaps, the only semblance of revenge here is that in spite of the win, the Uruguayans could not progress; as they needed more than the two goals they scored, to sail through.
But on a more critical note, the Stars fail to glow in the Mundial as expected – and bowing out in the first round is not something we should be proud of at all. No matter how you look at it, they failed – and it is good they have apologized to the nation for the let-down.
Indeed, it is so sad that we have to embrace another calamitous first round exit at the World Cup – just like it happened in Brazil 2014, the last time we participated in the Mundial. This has to be halted!
From a modest Round of 16 start (Germany 2006) to a stunning quarter-finals (South Africa 2010), many predicted Ghana to make a brave crack at the World Cup coronet in the next decade or so – or possibly venture into the last-four. Forlornly, it is not what we are seeing now.
This year alone, we have been eliminated in the opening round of two major tournaments – the first being the African Cup of Nations in Cameroon, early January.
As one of the continent’s football powerhouses, this does not speak good of us at all. It is as if we are only interested in qualifying for major tournaments only to go and make the numbers. This must stop!
We should be competitive and be famished for honours – and this we can only achieve if we bury our self-interest and put the nation first above any other thing.
Fortunately, we have some great quality young players in this present Black Stars team which when well-harnessed and guided, could take the world by storm in subsequent tournaments.
It is not all bleak and despair; there is a glowing light at the end of the tunnel. But we must start working now if we are really desirous of halting this trend of disastrous first round eliminations.
By John Vigah
Hot!
Attorney General charges Chairman Wontumi and two others over alleged GH¢18.7 million Ghana Exim Bank fraud
The Office of the Attorney General has charged Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, and two others over the alleged fraudulent acquisition of funds from the Ghana Export-Import Bank for a farming project.
The charges were brought against Chairman Wontumi, Thomas Antwi-Boasiako, who is currently at large, and Wontumi Farms Limited.
According to court documents released by the Attorney General’s office, Chairman Wontumi, identified as the first accused person, allegedly approached the Ghana Exim Bank in January 2018 for financial support to undertake a large-scale farming project.
The prosecution said he applied for a GH¢19 million facility on behalf of Wontumi Farms Limited and claimed that the company had secured a 100,000-acre parcel of land for the proposed farming venture.
The Attorney General alleged that documents submitted together with the application contained false information.
According to the prosecution, one of the documents presented as a board resolution letter was dated January 23, 2018, but referred to a board resolution supposedly passed on December 9, 2017, four days before the company was officially incorporated on December 14, 2017.
The prosecution further stated that the accused persons also submitted a project proposal claiming that 2,500 hectares of the proposed farm would employ about 6,000 families, representing nearly 38,000 individuals.
Court documents indicate that the Ghana Exim Bank later approved an GH¢18.7 million facility made up of loans and grants for the project.
The facility was reportedly intended for the purchase of agricultural machinery, working capital, staff costs and consultancy services.
According to investigators, the bank disbursed more than GH¢14.3 million to the company between January and March 2018.
However, investigations by the Economic and Organised Crime Office of the Attorney General allegedly found that the proposed farming activities were never carried out.
The prosecution said the accused persons neither purchased the agricultural machinery nor secured the land they claimed to own for the project.
Investigators also alleged that Chairman Wontumi later submitted a document to the bank as proof that the company had purchased agricultural machinery worth GH¢4 million.
However, investigations reportedly established that the document was originally a pro-forma invoice from KAS-SAMA Enterprise and not an actual receipt.
According to the Attorney General’s office, the inscription “Pro-forma Invoice” was allegedly altered and replaced with the word “Receipt” before it was submitted to the bank.
The prosecution further alleged that Chairman Wontumi withdrew large sums from the company’s accounts and used the funds for personal expenses and investments in other businesses.
The Attorney General stated that attempts by the bank to recover the money were unsuccessful.
The Economic and Organised Crime Office reportedly began investigations into the matter in March 2025.
Chairman Wontumi was later arrested, cautioned and officially charged on May 14, 2026.
By: Jacob Aggrey
The Ministry of Health has assured the public that Ghana has not recorded any suspected or confirmed case of Ebola Virus Disease despite recent outbreaks reported in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In a public alert issued on May 18, the Ministry disclosed that confirmed and suspected Ebola cases had recently been recorded in the two African countries, according to updates from the World Health Organization and the Africa CDC.
The Ministry noted that it is working closely with international health partners to strengthen Ghana’s preparedness and response systems across the country.
According to the statement, authorities have activated several precautionary measures, including enhanced surveillance and screening at airports, seaports and land borders.
It added that health officials are also increasing monitoring of travellers arriving from affected countries while health workers are being trained and equipped to identify, isolate and manage suspected cases safely.
The Ministry further disclosed that public health emergency coordination systems and rapid response teams have been activated to respond quickly if necessary.
It indicated that public education and community awareness campaigns have been intensified to keep citizens informed about the disease and preventive measures.
The Ministry explained that Ebola Virus Disease is a severe viral illness spread through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected persons or contaminated materials and surfaces.
It stated that symptoms may include fever, weakness, headache, vomiting, diarrhoea and, in severe cases, bleeding.
The public has therefore been advised to wash their hands regularly with soap under running water or use alcohol based hand sanitizers.
The Ministry urged Ghanaians to avoid direct contact with bodily fluids of sick persons and to avoid handling dead bodies without proper protection.
Additionally, it cautioned against handling or eating sick or dead wild animals and advised the public to ensure that all meat is properly handled and thoroughly cooked before consumption.
The statement encouraged persons experiencing suspected symptoms to report immediately to the nearest health facility.
The Ministry appealed to the public to avoid spreading misinformation and rely only on official updates from the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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