Interview: Q& A With Former Ghana Fa Boss Lepowura Mnd Jawula

Former Ghana FA boss MND Jawula.

Former Ghana FA chairman Lepowura Alhaji Mohammed Nuru-Deen Jawula has been speaking to the Graphic Sports about being a chief and a football administrator.

The 64-year-old, now chairman of the MTN Ghana FA Cup Committee,  reflects on his tenure and also life as a politician.

How long have you been the chairman of the MTN/FA Cup Committee?

This is the third year. The FA Cup started since the inception of the league, but it went off for about 10 years. From the year 2000, nobody heard about it till 2010 when we decided to revive it.

How does it feel to be the committee chairman of such a prestigious tournament?

Well, as you know, I've been a chairman of the Ghana Football Association before, and this is just a sub-committee of the association, so naturally I am supposed to know my way around. Over the years we have had good sponsorship from MTN, but our major challenge has been filling the stadia with spectators, and we hope the situation will change.

What has been the success story of the three FA Cup competitions we have witnessed so far?

First of all, we've been able to ensure that every club of importance in Ghana gets the opportunity to participate in this competition. It is not about the Premier League or the Division One League (DOL) where only the Premier and Division One clubs take part. So every team of repute in Ghana, irrespective of location, gets to participate. Secondly, the champion or winner gets to play in the CAF Confederations Cup. This competition also offers us the opportunity to look at match officiating all over again, and I think we have seen tremendous improvement in that area over the past three years. We have not experienced the problems associated with the Premier league and the DOL because most of the matches were televised and people showed interest. They might not come to the stadium, but at least they watched the matches on their screens, and that gave us a lot of exposure.

What about the challenges?
As I said earlier, our major challenge is getting fans to fill the stadia. Other than that, MTN has given us everything we need. They have provided jerseys, paid for officiating, honours the best player (for every match), among others. Aside winning bonuses for the players, Medeama SC, the club that won, also received GH¢50,000 to help them participate in the Confederations Cup.

Now that the MTN sponsorship has ended, what plans has your committee put in place to secure a renewal or a replacement?

Yeah, the MTN contract has ended but there is a company called Avantis Solutions that brokered this sponsorship deal for us so they are in talks with MTN again, and if everything goes well there will either be a renewal or something more interesting.

If there will be a replacement, which company is next?

That I can't tell because Avantis Solutions will arrange that together with the GFA.

What benefits do you think the revival of the MTN/FA Cup competition has brought to Ghana football and what should clubs and football fans expect in the coming years?

It has brought up information about players down the line who would never have been known. Most of these players came from Division One and Two, and because they were featured live on television people got to know about them. Some of them were unearthed due to the competition, so that's the biggest advantage. It also helped us to know some players who could play in national teams as well.

You were once the chairman of the Ghana Football Association.

It was from 1997 to 2001 but before then I was a member of the Association from 1995, and I became the vice chairman to Nana Sam Brew-Butler, the then chairman.

 So what was your biggest achievement or the most significant thing you did as GFA chairman?

I think the whole concept of professionalism started during our tenure. It started from the Butler administration till the time I took over, so we were the pioneers of the concept of professionalism in Ghana football. Also, in 1995 before I even became the vice chairman, we went to Ecuador and won the FIFA Under-17 World Cup. This was the time when the Black Stars had begun to qualify every time for the Cup of Nations, but before that it was intermittent.

Did you at any point have any regrets as GFA chairman?

Yes, I have regrets. During my time, there were a lot of in-fighting and undermining, and one wonders whether it was worth it because I came to serve as a dignified civil servant, but because people wanted your job, they would come and say all sorts of things about you. Most of the things people were saying look like a joke today.

Whatever they were complaining about were issues we could have solved among ourselves either in the boardroom or as friends at the club level. People took things personal; they undermined; and tried character assassination, among others. Looking back, it is very sad. I see some of those people today and I wonder whether that was necessary.

What event will you describe as the most memorable in your football administration career?

During my time, my mind was focused on international competitions, and so in 1999 we won the Africa Under-20 Championship which was held in Ghana, and I also served as a member of the Local Organising Committee. We went to Nigeria to play in the FIFA Under-20 World Cup, and we came fourth. I was also a member of the committee that did the bidding for Ghana to host the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, and served on the LOC (for the tournament), and we were able to impress on government to build two new stadia in Tamale and Takoradi. It has always been a source of pride for me knowing that I had a say in the construction of those stadia.

How do you see Ghana football today?
Well, with the kind of leadership Kwesi Nyantakyi is giving us we have a better sense of unity now, and perhaps people are less adventurous, less cunning and less ambitious as it was during my time. I see Mr Nyantakyi facing the bullet, but he doesn't face the backstabbing which was frequent at my time.

I think I prefer to take the bullets than to be stabbed at the back because you think people are your friends, yet they want to get you out of your position. In Nyantakyie's administration, at least, we are all cooperating, and I am happy that he calls on me to contribute my quota as and when necessary. I am also on the CAF Committee which he nominated me to be and later (CAF president) Issa Hayatou also nominated me so they had to find another person for Ghana, but the whole idea of the GFA nominating me earlier gives me a good feeling and I think that we are all here to assist him. In my time I didn't get this kind of assistance.

 Would you say that there has been vast improvement in the administration of football in the country in recent years?

What I will say is that the professionalism that we started has been deepened now because most of our players have gone professional, and when they come, they bring their experiences on board. Today, the Black Stars are rubbing shoulders with other teams at the world level. We meet professional players and administrators from other countries, and that will help you to also improve your lot. Ghana has qualified for two World Cups in a row, and that's a plus for Nyantakyi, so in that regard I will say that his administration is ahead of mine.

Having said that, what is your view of the FA president getting a second appointment onto FIFA's Standing Committee recently? Do you think he deserves it?

What people should know is that the appointment to either CAF or FIFA Committee can be given to other Ghanaians. I still serve on a CAF Committee although I left the GFA long ago and we organise the various club football competitions on the continent and other members from Ghana are also serving on the continental body as well. Because he won and became executive member of CAF Committee that is why he is doing better.

As I said earlier, he is lucky to get the support of Ghanaians. During my tenure of office I showed interest to become a member of the Executive Committee but I didn't get the needed support. There was undermining so I couldn't get there, and this is well known to the fraternity. It is only unity and support that will put Ghana football ahead.

What do you think needs to be done to better the lot of Ghana football and the continent at large?

At the continental level we have to improve upon our game. It will impact on the continent as a whole, but at the local level I think strongly that the time has come for government to step in and help with funding. I say this strongly and emphatically, and I hope it will make the headlines because in most countries when clubs qualify for CAF championships, governments intervene to at least handle their air flight or hotel bills and so on, but it is not so in Ghana, and, therefore, we are not able to go far enough. I think that government should vote a specific amount of money, say $5 million a year just for football so that first division, second division, regional football associations and the clubs can have some money to organise their programmes.

Don't forget that football is blocking a big hole in the employment area in Ghana and also blocking a big hole in the area of the youth moving about idly and getting into trouble or doing drugs. The good thing is that you can't do football and drugs at the same time because it will expose you in a short time, so we are able to get a lot of the youth out of that system. Some of these footballers are role models and that alone helps the government to understand the youth and help them.

There is money in football because the players are bought at expensive prices, they travel frequently, sleeping in big hotels, among others. So government must step in formally to give the game a boost and make our youth happier and healthier. That way they can also contribute their quota to the development of the country. Five million dollars is nothing for President John Mahama and his government to sign it off.

What about the other sporting activities like athletics, hockey and handball whose officials are already complaining that a chunk of our money goes into football administration at the expense of theirs?

It is wrong for them to think that way. How does handball or athletics impact on Ghanaians from Axim to Bawku. How much of these other sports permeate into society. If you talk about football, everybody loves it and it has become the heartbeat of the nation. Look at the money that Ghanaian players abroad bring to this country. Other countries and multinational companies are investing into this country because of football. See football is doing its own public relations for this country and we have to give it the maximum push. Football is a mode of employment but people don't know. We will be at a standstill without football so government must negotiate with the GFA and put some amount of money down purposely for football administration yearly so that the youth can continue to do well and be good role models.

I found out that you are the Lepowura of the Kujolobito Gate of Lepo-Kpembe in the Northern Region and you have also been a politician for some time now. How are you able to combine your roles as a chief, a politician and a football administrator?

I don't really have a strong political background although I come from a political family. My father, Kpembiwura Jawula Ababio, was CPP party chairman, and my late brother, Habib Jawula, a founder member of the Progress Party, was also a District Commissioner. I got into politics when I started working in the civil service and some of my colleagues thought that I could be a good politician. Currently I have toned down a bit on politics because the Constitutional Review Commission has stated clearly with guidelines that chiefs should not indulge in politics, but I can assure the world that I do politics in my house (laughs). As to how I combine my roles I think it is just part of my DNA to do a lot of things at the same time.

Movement keeps me strong and healthy. Right from infancy, my aim had been to be part of world governing body so I tried my party, the New Patriotic Party, to see if I could get nomination as vice presidential candidate, but it didn't work for me but I don't blame anybody for that. Perhaps my calling is to do other things such as football administration and management consultancy so I am on it.

Would you have relinquished your chieftaincy title to serve Ghana if your party had won the 2008 or 2012 election?

Yes, I would have done it. My intention was to vacate the seat and perhaps I should have done that even before the campaign started but I found it too difficult to do that because I wasn't too sure whether I would get the mandate. It was a 50-50 chance and I lost so if I had vacated earlier I would have lost my skin title as well and cannot go back for it. Also as of 2008, our constitution was unclear about the details of chiefs in politics, but as I said earlier the Constitutional Review Committee has made it clear that if you are a chief you cannot wear a party shirt, hold a party card and cannot mount a platform to campaign. That is why I have totally toned down but people are wondering why it is so.

So if the opportunity of a running mate comes up again will you take it?

To be very honest with you the whole idea of a running mate has totally collapsed because my junior brother is John Mahama and he is the President currently, so if anybody wants me in politics they should be thinking of me as a flag bearer and not a running mate. That is the only way I will leave my chieftaincy title for politics. To go as a running mate means queuing behind my junior brother and that won't be attractive to my people. They will even not take me serious.

When did you become a chief and what has been your achievement as a chief?

That was in January 2003. I have been a spokesperson for my people where it matters. I make donations to my people and I channel their needs to government, and most at times government has responded. I am just not happy with the level of development in my area because the roads to Gonja are bad and there are no jobs. So on my own and with the help of some colleagues, we have started some initiatives to help, and in a year or two those initiatives will take shape.

 Now tell us about yourself; education, family and other interests…

I went to University of Cape Coast to read English and Economics for my first degree, and I also went to (the University of Ghana) Legon for my Masters in African Literature, and just after 2008 when we lost the elections I went back to Legon to do another Masters degree in Social Policy because I am interested in societal affairs. I have done professional courses in Public Administration and Management at GIMPA and in Canada.

I worked with the civil service for 32 years. I started as assistant division officer and ended up as the Chief Director of the Ministry of Health. I have also worked at the Ministry of Finance as well as Ministry of Harbours and Railways. I worked as a DCE for Walewale and Gambaga from1979 to 1980. At the football level I was chairman of Real Tamale United Management Committee and at the moment I have my own club called Guan United which is a Division One club. I am 64 years old and the only child of my mother but my father had other children. My mother is 83 years old and still alive residing in Accra New Town. I have two wives, eight children and God has blessed me with 15 grand children.

I am strong and passionate about my religion. I had a very good Quranic training and a good upbringing, thanks to my mother. I am also a farmer and will always be. When I started serving in Yendi I had a maize farm and currently I have a mango plantation and others in Salaga.

Finally, what inspires you in life?
Doing charity is what inspires me. I don't usually sell the yield from my farms; I give them to my society as charity. I try hard not to get into trouble with anybody and those who don't like me I love them and always pray for them.

 What will be your final word?
That will be for the youth. They should be hard working. By the time I was 18 years old I was already independent. I schooled myself and did almost everything for myself. My parents were rich but I learnt to cater for myself earlier by indulging in petty trading. I only went to my mother for assistance once a while. So the youth should desist from vices and work hard.