Ghana’s Sports Minister, Mustapha Ussif, has pointed fingers at the Ghana Cycling Federation for the equipment malfunction that affected Ghanaian cyclists at the African Games.
The incident occurred when the country’s national cycling champion, Michael Naaba, had to withdraw from the competition due to a faulty bicycle. Naaba revealed that the tube connected to his bike exploded shortly after he started the race, forcing him to exit.
Naaba further disclosed that he had been using an old tube for training since there were no provisions for new ones for the competition.
This revelation, along with similar complaints from other cyclists, prompted heavy criticism from the public directed at the Sports Ministry and the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the African Games.
However, in response to the backlash, Sports Minister Mustapha Ussif absolved both the ministry and the LOC of any responsibility for the equipment failure.
Ussif attributed the blame to the Ghana Cycling Federation, stating that the ministry and the LOC had requested all necessary equipment from the federations beforehand.
“Basketball submitted their list, and we went through it with them and procured all the equipment for them worth close to a million dollars, just like other Federations,” the Minister said.
“So if you’re the Cycling Federation, and you knew that you needed fibre-made bicycles and not aluminium bicycles, it is your responsibility to submit your list to us, and we will get them. If we can not get all, at least we will buy some,” Mustapha Ussif said.