Prof. Amin Alhassan, Director General of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), has addressed public criticism following allegations that the national broadcaster received $3 million for covering the 2023 African Games. The claims were brought to light by Mustapha Ussif, the Minister of Youth and Sports, during a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) hearing on Monday, August 19, 2024.
In an interview on Uniq FM, Prof. Alhassan expressed surprise at the minister's statement, clarifying that GBC only received $105,000 for its role as the official broadcaster of the event. He emphasized that this payment was in recognition of GBC's commitment to dedicating an entire channel to the African Games, halting regular programming on GTV Sports Plus for 24 hours a day.
"The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation was compensated with $105,000, not the $3 million claimed," Prof. Alhassan stated. He explained that the funds were meant to offset the opportunity cost of suspending the channel’s usual programming, which resulted in a loss of income.
When asked about the allocation of the funds, Prof. Alhassan clarified that the $105,000 was used to support GBC's operations during the games. He also noted that the All African Games coverage was not a profit-making venture for GBC, but rather a national responsibility. He pointed out that GBC was brought into the project less than a month before the event, which necessitated external technical support to ensure the broadcasts were successful.
Prof. Alhassan further explained that the technical production team responsible for the broadcasts was supervised by GBC, but the payments to these service providers were facilitated through GBC by the Ministry of Youth and Sports. He emphasized that GBC did not profit from these payments and acted solely as the official broadcaster ensuring the work was completed.
Regarding the $105,000 payment, Prof. Alhassan confirmed that it was made by the Ministry of Youth and Sports and reiterated that GBC received no additional funds. He expressed confidence that GBC can provide documentation to PAC to support all transactions related to the games.
"We have records of all payments made, and we can easily provide documentation to prove the $105,000 payment to GBC as well as payments made to third parties," Prof. Alhassan assured.
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