At a time when the President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo has publicly admitted that the country is facing its worst economic crisis, the citizens are not happy that they are being kept in the dark over the Black Stars World Cup kitty. In a national address on Sunday, Addo said, “We are in a crisis, I do not exaggerate when I say so. I cannot find an example in history when so many malevolent forces have come together at the same time.”Ghana unveils not a new Black Stars player for Qatar World Cup. The GOAT Akabenezer. Dr Likee pic.twitter.com/b1qmOlSLZv— Saddick Adams (@SaddickAdams) October 30, 2022 It is already public knowledge that each of the 26 players that will make the Stars’ final squad to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which kicks-off on November 20, will pocket a cool Sh12,000,000 appearance fee. But the minister for sports Mustapha Ussif will not disclose the full budget till after the tournament.”We have budgeted for the entire tournament, and where we are going to reach will determine how much we are going to spend,” he said.“So until we finish the tournament we can’t tell you (Ghanaians) how much we are going to spend, but we have a budget estimated for the entire tournament,” he added.Michael Essien meets up with Black Stars Coach Otto AddoThe two played for Ghana at the 2006 WCOtto Addo is currently in Nordjaelland, paying a visit to his former club where he worked as an assistant Coach pic.twitter.com/fRKjZUYshB— Frank Darkwah (@Blaqqkoffi) November 2, 2022 It is reported that the minister will be required to disclose the budget on the floor of Parliament on November 4 with some sources putting the figure at a whopping Sh2.8 billion.Government spending on the Black Stars ahead of major competitions has often been a major talking point within Ghana. There’s a growing feeling that the government is wasting money on a single team at the expense of others, including in various sporting codes.Black Stars will camp in Qatar starting next week Friday and are booked to play their last friendly match against Switzerland. The team is in Group H of the global spectacle alongside Portugal, Uruguay and South Korea.Their opening match will be against Portugal at 974 Stadium, Doha on Thursday, November 24.
