Sports

Sports should be devoid of politics – Nii Lante Vanderpuye

Former Youth and Sports Minister, Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye has advised Ghanaians to put political affiliations aside and channel their energies into developing Ghana sports.

According to the former minister, sports offer entertainment and bring people together, adding that, it was more the reason why involving partisan politics in its administration makes it dangerous.

Mr. Vanderpuye made the comment on Accra based Angel TV sports show in response to Black Stars midfielder Mubarak Wakaso comments that politics has ruined the game of football especially in the country.

According to Wakaso, as the country’s fortunes in football has been ruined by the involvement of the two leading political parties [NPP, NDC] and has contributed in Ghana’s failure to win the Africa Nations Cup for the past 30 years.

“I will speak the truth today. Do you know our problem about the game? Wakasu asked.

“Maybe we know but we don’t want to say it. But I think politics ruins the Black Stars at times. When NDC is in power, NPP doesn’t want us to win and vice versa,” Wakaso told Angel TV.

The Member of Parliament for the Odododiodoo constituency also confirmed that he experienced it as a Sports Minister.

“I agree with Wakaso 100 per cent. Let me be honest, partisan politics has badly affected the Black Stars and even some of the sports federations,” he said.

“I experienced it as a Sports Minister. Some people influenced some of the players against my administration as minister and I got to know,” he added.

“Some of my own party people too tried to influence me and advised me against entertaining some Black Stars players in my office because they believed these players belonged to NPP so I should not deal with them.

“These are facts,” he emphasized.

“We have to throw partisan politics out of sports. We have to understand that sports should be devoid of politics. It is a big challenge,” he advised. -Ghanasoccernet

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