Ade Coker Tipped For Sports Ministry

Ade Coker With the Education portfolio now detached from the Youth and Sports Ministry under the new political dispensation, President John Evans Atta Mills is expected to nominate two persons to run the latter segment in the next few days.

Mr. Ade Coker, a soccer administrator with several years of experience in the field, DAILY GUIDE SPORTS has learnt, could be one of the two persons to be nominated to run the portfolio.

The paper tried in vain to find out whether Mr. Coker has got wind of anything in the pipeline because he would not pick the call made to him.

A number of persons spoken to on the powerful soccer terrain in Accra appeared to be pleased with the possible selection of a man they claimed could change the face of sports in the country.

As Vice Chairman of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) between 1997 and 2000, he was responsible for the Black Starlets team which won the silver medal at the Under-17 World Cup in Egypt in 1997.

Beside being Chairman of the Satellites team which clinched Gold in the 1999 African Youth Championship (AYC) competition, he was also Chairman of the Black Stars Management Committee between 1998 and 2000.

Mr. Coker's association with the GFA, Accra Great Olympics and AC Olympiakos, garnered for him, mammoth experience which a number of soccer loving Ghanaians think would put him in a position to enhance the fortunes of sports in general in the country.

Perhaps what would add to the already stated advantages of the man is his business management background both theoretically and practically.

He is said to hold a BA (Hons) and an MSc both in Economics from two British institutions and was a one-time economist with the National Savings and Credit Bank.

While in England he worked with the Wandsworth Borough between 1983 and 1985 where he was in charge of assessing social benefits and comparing data for poverty reduction within a certain class of social sectors of the council.

Currently he is the Chief Executive Officer of Accorn Forex Bureau.

For five years he has been the President of the Ghana Forex Bureau Association during which he was involved in the currency stabilization policy of the government.

During his association with Great Olympics, the Accra soccer team made important inroads in competitive soccer.

Sports management is one area which has tasked the abilities of various persons put in charge of it over the years.

The ministry would beside promoting the development of the lesser known sports, undertake a massive transformation of soccer management in the country, which lovers of the  sports think need an overhaul.

Perhaps that is why a man like Mr. Ade Coker could be given the nod to try his hands in turning things around in this vexed area.

Malam Isa made news when he was put in charge of this delicate and difficult ministry by losing a substantial amount of money in hard currency meant to be doled out to the national team as winning bonus.

The loss marked the beginning of his fall in the ministry leading eventually to his imprisonment.

This was a sequel to his much publicized announcement that he was going to sweep the ministry but he got swept away in the end. Whoever is put in this ministry must be both a sports lover and someone with the appropriate business acumen. 

From Sports Desk