Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye, the former Minister of Youth and Sports, has opened up about a conversation he had with former President John Agyekum Kufuor when he was first appointed as Minister of Youth and Sports.
Nii Lante Vanderpuye explained that he crossed paths with Kufuor at the funeral of Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh’s father, and the ex-president had some words to share with him.
The outgoing MP for the Odododiodio constituency said that Kufuor urged him to put national interest above partisan and personal interests.
According to Vanderpuye, Kufuor was unhappy with the payment of winning bonuses to players and coaches of the Black Stars.
“I was part of the NDC delegation that went to the funeral of NAPO’s father in Kumasi, and Kufuor asked me to come sit by him. At the time, I had just been appointed Sports Minister, and he told me to prioritize the interest of Ghana over any other thing. What is right should be right, and what is wrong should be wrong.
“He asked why we had to pay national team players to play for the country. It motivated me and gave me a new perspective on the sport. I realized that if President Kufuor had such concerns, then clearly Ghanaians also had similar problems,” he said.
The comments, which were made on Pure FM prior to the 2024 elections, have resurfaced following the defeat of the NPP in the polls.
In the 2024 presidential race, former President Mahama, who was the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, won the race according to the results declared by the Electoral Commission. He beat 12 other candidates with 56.55% of the total valid votes.
His closest contender, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia of the ruling New Patriotic Party, obtained 41.61% of the total valid votes cast.
Nii Lante Vanderpuye has emerged as the most likely candidate for the role of Minister of Youth and Sports.
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