Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports Pius Enam Hadzide has defended government’s decision to rename the Tamale Sports Stadium after late Ex-Vice President Aliu Mahama.
The Tamale Sports Stadium was re-christened the Aliu Mahama over the weekend at a ceremony in Tamale which was attended by Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia.
The late Aliu Mahama, Vice President under the Ex-President J.A. Kuffour between 2001 and 2008, was one of the founding fathers of Real Tamale United, a once powerful Ghana Premier League side now wallowing in Division II.
The decision to rename the stadium after Aliu Mahama has attracted criticism from certain quarters, with suggestions it should have been named after a sportsman and not a politician.
But Hadzide feels Mahama’s contribution to sports development in Ghana makes him deserving of the honor.
“You will admit that his contribution to sports in Ghana is not in doubt. And if you recollect the role that he played in the formation of RTU, you will come to the same conclusion.
“He also championed the decentralization of sporting facilities in Ghana. In times past, sports facilities could only be found in Accra and Kumasi but through the efforts of Aliu Mahama, Tamale and Sekondi now have stadia too,” he said.
