AFCON 2015 in Ghana? No way! – Ghana Medical Association

The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has expressed its displeasure over the government’s decision  to consider the request by the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) for Ghana to host the 2015 African Cup of Nations should Morocco withdraw as hosts.

The Minister of Youth and Sports confirmed in an interview on Thursday with Citi Sports that the country had been approached by CAF about the possibility of hosting the biannual tournament in 2015, after reports that original hosts are considering withdrawing.

“CAF wrote to us a few days ago actually and indicated that Morocco had given strong indications that they will pull out if CAF did not change the date,” he revealed.

CAN2008

Media also indicate that 2013 AFCON hosts, South Africa are being considered by the governing body of African football as replacement hosts.

Ebola has already claimed the lives of about 4,500 people in West Africa, with Guinea and Sierra Leone, two of the most affected countries, still involved in qualification for the tournament.

And speaking to Citi News, the Deputy General Secretary of the GMA, Dr. Justice Yankson, says it will be risky for the government to accept the request from CAF.

“If people are going to be here for more than or close to a month, some could come in at a point where they do not have a full blown infection or are not exhibiting the symptoms. but the symptoms could come in after they have already entered the country. that is something we need to think about. Before we take a final decision we really need to sit down and do our homework well.”

Morocco not out yet

The Moroccan youth and sports minister Mohamed Ouzzine said on Thursday that though they had not yet withdrawn as hosts, they consider the advice of the World Health Organisation (WHO), which has advised against big gatherings to prevent the spread of the disease.

The Moroccan government lodged a request to CAF to postpone the tournament because of concerns over the Ebola epidemic, after it had ordered a report into the possibility that the tournament might lead to the disease spreading, in order “to avoid events which involve those countries affected by the Ebola virus.”

CAF stated that no changes will be made to its schedule ahead of the tournament, although they would consider the request by the Moroccans on November 2.

 

afcon-560x330

“Our concern is the health of Africa, and based on WHO reports and guidelines, we have to listen,” Ouzzine said.

“We will discuss these things when we meet with Caf – and we might even debate other options. But I beg you, what’s the significance of the financial losses compared to human losses? A human being is priceless.

 

By: Edwin Kwakofi

ABOUT: Nana Kwesi Coomson

[email protected]

An Entrepreneur, Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Communications Executive and Philanthropist. Editor-in-Chief of www.233times.com. A Senior Journalist with Ghanaian Chronicle Newspaper. An alumnus of Adisadel College where he read General Arts. His first degree is in Bachelor of Arts - Political Science (major) and History (minor) from the University of Ghana. He holds MSc in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Energy with Public Relations (PR) from the Robert Gordon University in the United Kingdom. He is a 2018 Mandela Washington Fellow who studied at Clark Atlanta University in USA on the Business and Entrepreneurship track.

View all posts by: Nana Kwesi Coomson  

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

ABOUT 233TIMES

233times is a Ghanaian media house which serves as a major source of exclusive interviews ,music and video downloads, news and more.

233times reports on major events,news covering entertainment, politics, sports, business, technology, etc from within Ghana, Africa and beyond.

We have a platform for the amateur artistes to portray their staggering talents ...more...

CONTACT US

For further enquiries, please contact us via our contact us page link: CONTACT

WE ON SOCIAL MEDIA. FOLLOW US


To advertise with us or make enquiries, please visit 233times.net/advertise or call Selorm (Selorm) | Selorm (Nana Kwesi)