It what may be the biggest conversation yet on the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic and its impact on Ghana sports, Happy Sports will on Wednesday bring together some of the relevant brains on Ghana sports. It is the first time such a talk show is being organised by a local media house on the topic with a continuum of top sports policy makers.
Dubbed, “The Effects of Covid-19 on Ghana’s Sports Industry”, the event airs between 9am and 11am on ETV Ghana and GTV Sports+. It will be moderated by Ohene Bampoe Brenya of Happy FM and Benjamin Willie Graham of GTV Sports.
Five esteemed guests up for the event are Deputy Youth and Sports Minister, Hon. Perry Okudzeto; Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Sports and Culture, Hon. Alex Agyekum; Ghana Football Association President, Kurt Okraku; President of the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC), Ben Nunoo Mensah and, the venerable President of the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG), Kwabena Yeboah.
Since the outbreak of Covid-19, virtually all sporting events worldwide have either been halted or suspended to protect lives. Globally, armies of healthcare workers have not only been marshalled to treat cases of Covid-19, police and military brigades have also been engaged to enforce lockdowns and other restrictions in cities and towns.
Ghana has been no exception. Despite efforts to contain the infection, cases of Covid-19 continue to rise with no end in sight, as to when there will be a return to normalcy. It is against this backdrop that, Happy Sports wants to examine the extent to which Ghana sports have suffered as a result of the outbreak – with a look ahead to recovery.
Ohene Bampoe Brenya, one of the moderators of tomorrow’s event, shared his thoughts on the upcoming show. The Happy Sports anchor believes that, Covid-19 issues relative to sports are inexhaustive. Thus, their agenda is to have a slice of the cake, putting out what sports fans must know from the perspectives of the power brokers in Ghana sports.
“We are looking at the issues from the policy point of view. How has the development plans of the Youth and Sports Ministry been affected by Covid-19? We want to interrogate these issues; look at what is being done and what will be done as a way out”.
With football being topmost on the minds of most Ghanaians, GFA President, Kurt Okraku, may have a lot to share perhaps just like GOC President, Ben Nunoo Mensah, whose athletes must wait until August 2021 for the postponed 2020 Olympic Games.
In the case of the GFA, it will be good to know whether Covid-19 has actually wiped out the Bring back the love campaign. How clubs which are businesses have been affected; how much they have lost and whether or not, there are any interventions.
This, for me, is a must-watch programme.