By Danesius Marteh,
Contributor,
The Ministry of Finance & Development Planning (MFDP) has disbursed US$248,000 to the Liberia Football Association (LFA).
The money is part of a US$348,000 budget to fund Liberia’s World Cup qualifiers away to Tunisia in Tunis on 4 September and Malawi in Lilongwe on 8 September.
Sources say the budget prepared by the LFA, which was sent to the sports ministry for submission to MFDP, was sliced.
The sports ministry is hopeful Finance Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan will approve the balance US$100,000 before the last match.
A Freedom of Information request was sent to LFA secretary-general Emmett Crayton for a copy of the initial budget.
“Kindly provide a copy of the budget the LFA sent to the government, through the Ministry of Youth & Sports, to finance the games away to Tunisia and Malawi,” read an email sent to Crayton at 20:11GMT on 2 September.
In a follow-up phone call at 13:51GMT on 3 September, Crayton said the government was best placed to publicize what was sent by the LFA.
But Deputy Sports Minister Andy Quamie countered that those who prepared the budget are under obligation to make it public.
A call for greater transparency and accountability has begun across Africa since Ghana’s sports minister Kofi Adams revealed a budget sent by the football association (GFA) at a news conference in Accra on 2 September.
The US$1,239,090 budget, which was reduced to US$841,290, includes chartered flight, perdiems and winning bonuses for players and technical staff.
A proposed US$10,000 for GFA officials was removed by the government.
Head coach Otto Addo will receive US$10,000 while each player will pocket US$5,000 as winning bonuses respectively.
“This is the first time it has happened in my entire career. And I have been around for maybe 20 years,” said revered sports journalist Gary Al-Smith in the Inside African Football chat room on WhatsApp on 2 September.
Neither the government nor the LFA has ever published football related expenditures but LFA President Mustapha Ishola Raji has bragged about running an accountable and transparent body.
A delegation departed for Tunis on 31 August without the LFA disclosing its composition and the funds provided by the government.
It was only on 2 September when the LFA released three names from the list (Vice President Saye Taayor Adolphus Dolo, Down Town President Pokah K. Roberts and Samuel Cummings, Jr. of the Ministry of Finance & Development Planning), who had paid a courtesy call on Tunisia Football Federation President Moez Nasri and Vice President Hussein Jenayah.
