By Albert Allotey
Accra, Nov. 12, GNA – The Alcohol Policy Alliance Ghana (GhanAPA), has said it opposed the move by the Ghana Football Association (GFA) for the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) to lift the ban on sports sponsorship by alcohol industries.
“We wish to state in the strongest terms that we will not accept it and if Parliament entertains it, we will mobilise a nationwide protest by non-governmental organisations, health professionals, youth groups, faith-based organisations, parents, and the public,” it stated.
A statement signed by Ms Mary Yayra Kpogo, the National Coordinator of GhanAPA and copied to the Ghana News Agency said the ban existed to protect children and public health – not to punish industry.
“When an alcohol brand sponsors a football club, a league or a tournament, it is not mere advertisement – it is the deliberate recruitment of the next generation of drinkers; because sports are watched, idolized and followed overwhelmingly by children and young people,” it pointed out.
The statement said funding of sports must never come at the cost of children’s health.
“There are alternative, ethical sponsors – who do not sell a product that kills 2.6 million people globally every year,” it stated.
It added, “Alcohol consumption is a leading cause of road accidents, liver disease, kidney disease, domestic violence, and youth addiction in Ghana. If GFA needs support, let Government, the National Sports Authority and corporate Ghana invest in clean sponsorship. Do not mortgage our children’s health to alcohol.”
The statement drew GFA’s attention to the landmark judgment of the Supreme Court of Ghana in the case concerning the FDA ban on celebrities endorsing alcoholic beverages.
“The Supreme Court unanimously upheld the FDA ban and dismissed the challenge by the celebrities. The Court held that the restriction was constitutional, reasonable, and justified in a democratic society for the protection of public health, particularly the health of children and vulnerable persons, against the harmful effects of alcohol,” it emphasised.
The GhanAPA therefore demanded that the Parliamentary Select Committee rejects the GFA’s request to lift the FDA ban on sports sponsorship by alcohol industries, and that Parliament should also reaffirm its commitment to the FDA Guidelines and to the Supreme Court ruling protecting children.
It recommended that Parliament should be strengthen rather than weaken alcohol control – including a total ban on alcohol advertising, sponsorship and promotion that appeals to minors.
The statement urged that no private meeting or lobbying by the alcohol industry or its proxies should override the public health mandate of the FDA and the Ministry of Health.
It cautioned that if the matter is not publicly clarified and the ban not reaffirmed within 21 days by Parliament, GhanAPA and its partners would organize a mass peaceful protest to Parliament House and the GFA Secretariat and petition the Speaker of Parliament, the President, and the Supreme Court.
“We will also launch a nationwide media and social media campaign to expose any attempt to trade children’s health for sponsorship money. We do not make this demand lightly. We make it as a duty to the children of Ghana,” it stated.
“History will judge this Parliament by whether it stood with children or with alcohol profits. The Supreme Court has already chosen children,” it said, and urged Parliament to do same.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Odeng Adade