“I’ll Go and Collect My Money”: Finance Minister’s GHS58m Threat Sparks Heated Rebuttal from Sports Stakeholders Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson’s recent pledge to reclaim the entire GHS58 million government expended on the Black Stars, contingent on FIFA’s payout of World Cup participation fees, has drawn a sharp and detailed rebuttal from sports observers.
In a viral news card circulated by Joy Sports, Dr. Forson is quoted as saying, “I’ll go and collect my money,” referring to the massive state injection into the national team’s World Cup campaign. However, a strong rejoinder issued to the Minister argues that his threat is unnecessary, given established legal and administrative precedents, while pointing out glaring discrepancies in the Ministry’s own expenditure reporting.
“You Can Take Every Single Penny” – Historical Precedent
The rebuttal, directed specifically at the Finance Minister, dismisses his ultimatum as an overreaction, reminding him that the state has a historic record of retrieving FIFA funds.
“You can take every single penny you spent on Black Stars before and after the tournament if you so desire,” the statement read. It recalled the precedent set by former Sports Minister Akua Sena Danso in 2010, who commandeered every single penny received from FIFA, successfully arguing that the money belonged to the state.
Furthermore, in 2014, the Ghana Football Association (GFA) returned the $4 million that the government had flown across continents to pay appearance fees for the players. More recently, following the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the government took $5 million from the funds received by the GFA.
FIFA Disbursement Schedule Contradicts Ministry Narrative
The counter-argument takes specific issue with Dr. Forson’s justification for the state having to release funds, suggesting he has not been properly briefed on FIFA’s financial protocols.
According to the statement, FIFA pays Member Associations in two distinct tranches: the first tranche is released in April or May to allow qualified nations to prepare for the tournament, while the second tranche is paid post-tournament, typically arriving between October and December. This structure led the observers to challenge the accuracy of the government’s claim that it had to release funds for preparation.
“Unless we are told the $2.5 million FIFA gave for the preparations were not enough, it is not accurate,” the statement noted. It further clarified that Ghana’s friendly matches against Austria and Germany—organized at the invitation of those respective federations—were essentially covered by the host nations, further questioning why additional state funds were tapped for team preparation.
Ministry Spent the Money, Not the GFA
A critical clarification offered to the Finance Minister highlights that the GHS58 million allegedly expended was not directly spent by the GFA. Instead, the Ministry of Sports executed the disbursements.
“The only thing the GFA had to do was ask, and the Ministry would provide,” the rebuttal stressed, redirecting the accountability fully to the Ministry.
The observer noted that while Dr. Forson has every right to reclaim the funds, he is also within his rights to dictate their future application. The statement points to the 2022 precedent, where the $5 million retrieved by the government was specifically allocated to build a Qatar Legacy project in Prampram at the behest of the state.
Call for Accountability
Concluding the retort, the Finance Minister was urged to avoid public ultimatums and instead seek an internal accounting of the funds.
“Ask Kofi Adams [Minister of Sports] for a breakdown of the expenses, and he will be happy to provide,” the statement advised, suggesting that a granular review of the costs by the Ministry itself could resolve the current impasse without the need for a forced clawback of funds.
