[ 2010-09-12 ]

Reward Our Heroes and Heroines
Allow me a space in your newspaper to voice a
sentiment that I am sure is worthy of making.
Ghana must reward her sons and daughters, both
living and dead, who have made invaluable
contributions to the development of our
motherland. One such person deserves recognition
is, the late Ohene Djan, who also happened to be
my uncle.

Those younger ones born after 1966 may or may not
know this name. So let me briefly enlighten you
who this larger- than- life person was. Ohene
Djan was the person who helped shape organized
sports in Ghana during the 1960s. The first
President of Ghana, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah set up the
Central Organization of Sports (COS) and appointed
this young articulate thinker and organizer as its
first Director of Sports (now Minister of Sports).
He was charged with the awesome responsibility of
developing Ghana sports in its entirety.

The managerial style with which Ohene Djan worked
was impeccable, and this motivated the athletes to
excel. His accomplishments were too many to count
but there are a few that I would cover. Under his
leadership, Ghana saw the inception of organized
national league and knockout competitions as they
are now. The compulsory use of boots for national
first division and second division competitions
was also introduced.

In other to develop Ghana teams to the level of
excellence, in March of 1957, Accra Hearts of Oak
sporting club financially co-sponsored with Ohene
Djan to bring Sir Stanley Matthews, the Saint of
soccer, to Ghana to coach our players. That visit
provided the starting blocks from which the soccer
revolution sprang. It was also a window of
opportunity for Ohene’s rise to fame. He sent a
number of skillful players abroad to be trained as
future coaches.

The national soccer team, The Black Stars won the
African Cup of Nations in 1963 and 1965 under his
leadership. His athletic programs commenced with
Ike Quartey, when he won the first silver medal in
boxing in the 1960 Olympics in Rome. In 1962
Commonwealth Games held in Perth, Mike Ahey set a
Commonwealth record in long jump, just a few
inches shy of the then world record. In the 4 x
10 meters relay, Ghana won silver. The boxers won
2 gold and 4 silver medals. Thus, Ohene Djan
established Ghana as a new sports force in Africa.


Through hard work and dedication, Ohene Djan
occupied several other key positions both at home
and abroad. Besides being the Director of Sports,
he was the Executive Secretary of the GAFA;
Chairman of the Central Committees; Supervising
Chairman of the Real Republikans, aka “Osagyefo’s
own Club” (O.O.C.); Advisor to the Ghana Boxing
Authority, and Secretary General of the National
Olympic Committee. He was elected the First Vice
President of the African Football Conference of
the Federation Internationale de Football
Association (FIFA); Executive member of C.A.F.;
one of the architects of the institution of the
African Clubs and Cup Winners soccer championship;
and the spokesman for Africa. We will never know
the level of sports Ohene would have taken Ghana
had it not been the February 1966 Coup D’etat that
promptly removed him from office. His dreams were
cut short.


It is no wonder that Ohene Djan was well liked and
respected from all corners of the country. He was
the beacon of sports in Ghana. The late Sir,
Stanley Rous, for many years President of FIFA,
made the following remarks about him:
“He is a valued member of the International
Council, a clear thinker
and a lucid argumentator. He has a firm grip of
problems associated
with football promotion and development. His
solution to African problem is,
in particular, excellent. He is a useful asset to
football development in Africa.”

It is against this background that I recommend Mr.
Ohene Djan, the First Director of Sports of the
Republic of Ghana to be rewarded posthumously by
naming the entire Accra Sports Stadium after him.
“The Ohene Djan Sports Stadium. ” Naming just a
unit such as the VIP Stand after him is
irresponsible. Ohene Djan deserves better than
that.

Source - Thomas DJAN, USA

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