In my part of the world, there are many people who don’t regard the cat as a mere pet but a real delicacy. They however admit the cat is an extremely cunning animal and you need to be an expert executioner to kill it but as they defiantly put it “they are so many ways of killing a cat”.

This phrase has become common usage that could be interpreted to mean that there are several ways of putting your case across. In other words, there are several ways tone can take and achieve the same purpose. The end justifies the means if you like.

The President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) Kwesi Nyantakyi wants to rid Ghana football of bribery of referees and he has told a gathering of referees that those who are tempted with bribes should collect the money and do the right thing. By doing the right thing, the GFA boss says he wants the referee to be fair and firm.

I agree with the GFA boss that if those bribe givers who are obviously expecting favours (because they know they can’t win on merit) continue to lose matches because the referees are fair, they would stop giving bribes. This to me is a good deterrent to bring sanity into the sport but it is not easy for it needs a strong heart to be able to accept such tempting gifts and not deliver. This reminds me of a friend who said he could resist anything except temptation.

Kwesi Nyantakyi’s prescription cannot be said to be the ultimate antidote to the canker of bribery of referees but it would be most unfair to suggest that the GFA boss is encouraging referees to accept bribes as a section of the media in Ghana are trying to paint the picture.

The young articulate lawyer is convinced that accepting the money and delivering fairness would discourage the givers. ”I don’t think doing the right thing can refer to something untoward”, he said which brings me to media reports that the GFA boss may be asked to explain himself to the Parliamentary select committee on sports. This to my mind is totally uncalled for.

There are much more important issues to be tackled in our sports development like the provision of facilities for inexpensive disciplines like table tennis, volleyball and boxing and the weeding out of unreliable sports volunteers who are giving Ghana a bad international image in visa racketeering and other underhand deals.

The struggle for power in the various national sports associations following the recent changes in membership does not suggest we attach any seriousness to sports development. This mess should be sorted out in double quick time.

As things stand now there will continue to be murmurs about too much emphasis on football to the detriment of other disciplines but football will continue to tick because it has a well organized national programme that continues to show improvement every year. Until and unless the other sports are given national character football will continue to dominate.

It may not be a bad idea if the authorities try out a programme started by the late Sports Director Ohene Djan, whereby he tried to develop the other sports on the wings of football. Established football clubs like Kumasi Asante Kotoko, Accra Hearts of Oak, Berekum Arsenal, Real Tamale United Kpandu Heart of Lions, Sekondi Eleven Wise etc should be encouraged to have for example athletics, table tennis and boxing wings. Definitely an athletics competition between Kotoko Athletics Club and their Hearts of Oak counterparts could attract quite a following. and interest in the sport will naturally soar. The Sports Council could assist in the provision of sports kit and that would be the nation’s contribution to expand our sports development.

We need to keep the arm chair critics at bay and get to the practical ways of developing sports in the country.

Cheers everybody and keep loving sports.