Referees need prompt payment to improve standards – RAG secretary

Alex Anning, the General Secretary of the Referees Association of Ghana (RAG), has stated that timely payment of referees is crucial to enhancing officiating standards in Ghana's domestic leagues. In response to President John Dramani Mahama's call for improved refereeing standards, Anning emphasized the importance of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and the RAG collaborating to restore confidence in officiating and elevate the quality of refereeing in local competitions.

During a meeting with football stakeholders, Mahama urged both organizations to work together to address this critical issue.

Anning fully supported Mahama's assessment and highlighted prompt payment as a practical step towards reducing poor officiating. However, he questioned the GFA's financial capacity to fully support referees as full-time professionals. Many referees currently work part-time as they cannot rely solely on refereeing to earn a living. Anning argued that to make referees professional and remove them from their other professions, it is a matter of cost.

He believed that several part-time referees would be willing to become full-time officials if the GFA provided the necessary financial backing. Anning also claimed that the RAG has lost much of its authority over disciplinary matters involving referees, as the GFA now controls sanctions against officials who underperform. He claimed that the GFA seems unwilling to grant the RAG the necessary liberty to discipline referees.