'Heads to roll' for floodlight failure in Ghana-Lesotho World Cup qualifier
Accra, Ghana (PANA) - Drama unfolded on and off the football field on Friday as Ghana thrashed Lesotho 7-0 in their 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifing match played at the Baba Yara Sports stadium in Kumasi.
Rampaging Ghana was leading 4-0 by the ninth minute of the second half when the floodlights failed.
Sulley Muntari (19th), Dominic Adiyiah (25th and Jordan Ayew) had given Ghana's new coach Kwasi Appiah a perfect start, while Adiyiah added the fourth in the 50th minute.
The pitch remained dark for more than one hour and fans began to leave the stadium despite an announcement for them to remain seated.
The players matched off the field and speculation was rife that the match would be replayed on Saturday.
The Presidency reacted angrily to the huge national embarrassment with the announcement by the Director of Communication at the presidency, Koku Anyidoho, that the Ashanti Regional Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Abdulai Kurah, had been suspended with immediate effect.
"President (John Evans Atta) Mills is upset," he told an Accra-based radio station, Joy FM, adding that the heads of anybody who had a role to play in the matter will roll.
"This is unacceptable and the president is upset," he said.
But the ECG denied that its system had failed, with the Public Relations Manager of ECG, Erasmus Baidoo, saying it was the switch of the generator of the National Sports Council powering the floodlights that was faulty.
Asked whether the decision to suspend the ECG Director had been communicated to him, Mr Anyidoho said, "The people of Ghana matter more so it does not matter whether they are informed or not".
But there is confusion whether the ECG official would be suspended as there was light at the stadium and the fault could not have come from the power company.
When play resumed Ghana added three more goals through Christian Atsu (85th), Jordan Ayew (88th) and Jerry Akaminko to give Ghana a 7-0 victory.
-0- PANA MA 1June2012
