Ayariga Rips Into Ghanaian Media Again - Stop Discussing European Leagues And I Will Stop Focusing on Football

Beleaguered Youth and Sports Minister Mahama Ayariga has called on sports journalists in particular and the media as a whole to stop discussing European leagues and put a focus on cricket in South Africa and other sporting discipline.

According to the hard-pressed minister, he normally tune in to radio stations and Ghanaian journalists are discussing "all soccer leagues in Europe" every morning, meanwhile, these same journalists turn around to blame his sports ministry for over concentrating on football and the Black Stars.

He has therefore opined that the media should be pushed to discuss other sporting disciplines on their shows because what they do currently is unfair and only skew the public attention towards football.

Reacting to the president's comments on neglect of other sporting disciplines, Hon Ayariga says the media also has a major role to play rather than laying the problem at the door step of his ministry.

"Especially our friends in the media, sometimes it depends also on how much time you give to a particular sports",

"People complain about so much attention is given to football, eerrmm....the same journalists oh and yet when you tune into their radio programmes every morning they will discuss the European leagues but they will not discuss the cricket game in South Africa, or in India or Pakistan"

"But they will discuss all soccer leagues that are taking place and then they will turn round and blame the sports minister that he is focusing too much on football meanwhile he too he is focusing too much on football".

"We need to push them (media) to also allocate fair airtime to all the lesser known sports so that all of us can have a balance if not what they do is unfairly to skew public attention to football to the neglect of the other sports"