Captain of Ghana’s Amputee Football Team, Richard Arthur Openti has complained bitterly about how they've been prevented from meeting with President Nana Akufo-Addo and presenting their trophies.
The Black Challenge scooped the African Amputee Football Cup of Nations (AAFCON) title in 2021 and successfully defended it this year in Egypt after a superb victory over Morocco.
However, despite these notable feats, the team has not been given the opportunity to present either of their trophies to the President and take a memorable photo with him.
In an interview with Kumasi based Akoma FM, Openti revealed the team’s constant, but unsuccessful efforts to organize a meeting with the President through the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the National Sports Authority.
“We don’t have a car for our movements. We use trotro to attend matches. We feel very neglected. We shouldn’t be sidelined or ignored. We have won three trophies under President Nana Akufo-Addo, not even once have we been given the opportunity to even meet him and take a photo with him. Why are we treated this way?” Openti quizzed.
“I won’t say anything about what the Minister said, I will leave it to Ghanaians to judge. As disabled people, we don’t beg, we do our best with our condition. We use our own contributions to play for our nation.
"The first one we won, we were not given the opportunity to meet the President or present the trophy to him. We kept asking for an opportunity to present the trophy to the Minister and the President but we never got it until we met the Ex-President which prompted them to call us. This is sad because our colleagues from other countries are handsomely rewarded for winning tournaments but we go through this for our nation."
By: Pascal Amoah
