Sports Ministry Clarifies Reported $3m Payment To GBC For African Games Broadcast

Sports Ministry Clarifies Reported $3m Payment To GBC For African Games Broadcast   

The Ministry of Youth and Sports has clarified reports that they paid over $3 million to the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) to produce and broadcast the 13th African Games hosted in Accra.

In an appearance at the Public Accounts Committee, the Sports Minister, Mustapha Ussif, revealed that his outfit paid GBC over $3 million to produce and broadcast the games. 

But in a quick response, the Director General for GBC, Prof. Amin Alhassan, said GBC’s share of the fee amounted to only $105,000, and that all other payments made to them were forwarded to third parties.

“We could never have used those monies for GBC’s needs. That would have been criminal.

“We facilitated payments to foreign third parties who came in to do the production and not for the benefit of GBC. GBC’s benefit, I repeat, is $105,000 and that is what we got.”

The DG’s comments caused a public uproar, with questions raised over accountability.

In a detailed statement, the Sports Ministry clarified that they signed a contract worth $3.6 million with GBC to produce and broadcast the games.

But GBC, lacking the capacity to produce the games, recruited 3rd parties to help with the delivery of the contract.

The Ministry said that after the contract was agreed upon, they paid GBC $2.5 million in two tranches of $1.5 million and $1 million on 13th March and May 22, 2024.

The statement further states that on the direction of GBC, the Sports Ministry also paid $1 million directly to the 3rd parties, in accordance with the contract.

This brings the total amount paid to GBC and the 3rd parties to $3.5 million, leaving a $100,000 gap that has not been accounted for.