“The Highest and Most Beautiful things in life aren’t to be HEARD, nor READ about, nor SEEN, but if one will – are to be LIVED, quote from Danish Theologian, Soren Kiekegard, to me, is apt for the great Ben Koufie”
Our relationship started some 33 years ago when the H.P. Nyemitei Board, per the culture and tradition of the old Accra Hearts of Oak, appointed Seth Abadji as the Executive Chairman to succeed the humble and extremely nice medical officer, Dr Joseph E. Abbey.
A visionary undoubtedly requires like-minded people to help translate his dreams and visions. After several consultations on who coached the club, Uncle Ben got the nod. The Executive Secretary, another humble and experienced Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Stanley Nii Quarcoopome Barnor, asked me to deliver the appointment letter and, this was the beginning of a wonderful mentor-mentee relationship as he was to play significant roles in my formation and development later.
What was revealing and gratifying from the onset was his positive outlook to life, backed by an enticing personality ready to work with everyone (he came across) in pursuit of collective success.
For all his towering frame and huge accomplishment as a “total football” personality, serving global football – GFA, CAF and FIFA - in various capacities, Uncle Ben was disarmingly modest, humble and principled to a fault. His understanding and dedication to football development was second to none.
H.P. Nyemitei had explained to me that the “Levi: they called him within their circle, was a shortened form of Leviathan, that great marine creature. Perhaps because he was likened to the Leviathan that was why he left huge and indelible footprints wherever he found himself and I recount below.
Although he didn’t stay long enough with Hearts, one of his first suggestions to Abadji was the necessity to put in place a succession plan to groom young talents so as to keep the team afloat at all times and, also reduce the usually huge recruitment bills.
A management team was formed under the late E. A. Mensah (aka SkyHi Lee), and Seth Offei, Ekow Manuel, D.M. Richardson and Abeka Ankrah were members. I was the Secretary. Auroras was re-christened Rolands and to make the team competitive, I concluded admission requirements with Emmanuel Gyimah, then RFA Administrative Officer, for a place in the Regional Second Division League.
We were largely successful because of two reasons: Firstly, Uncle Ben supervised the selection exercise that spotted the likes of Emmanuel Tetteh, Ben Adjei, Anyetei Sowah, Santrofi Acquah, Emmanuel Abega Quarshie, Henry Acquah, Willie Bekoe, Eben Dugbartey, Bernard Aryee, Adjetey Sowah, Thomas Quaye, Ablade Kumah etc.
Whereas Ablade grew to captain the Black Meteors that won Africa’s first Olympic medal (bronze) at Barcelona ’92, Henry Acquah and Emmanuel Tetteh were goal kings of this country at various times. (Santrofi, Ben, Anyetei) rose to the captaincy of Hearts and one still, Ben Adjei, in recent past was an assistant/stopgap coach of Hearts.
Poignantly too, apart from services rendered to the various national teams by some of these players, they also became the core of the 1987 ‘Musical Youth’ team of Hearts after the mass purge of over 20 seasoned players of the team by the Dr Nyaho-Tamakloe Interm Management Committee.
The second reason was the availability of funds to run the project. Uncle Ben appealed to the then special advisor to the Executive Chairman, Pro. J. E. A. Mills, to convince such selfless and highly distinguished Phobians, notably Bob Mensah, Francis J. Doe, who were not only Vice Chairmen of the Executive, but were heavily involved in the funding of Hearts of Oak (at no cost) to support the exercise.
With a little stammer, “Uncle Fiifi, please their support is required to translate this vision. This vision will in turn change the lives of others.
It takes vision to change fortune”, still reverberates. Celebrated Banker and Treasurer, John Paul Bahiama Kumi, of Barclays Bank vetted and approved our budget and five per cent of the net share of proceeds from every match was ring fenced to complement the philanthropy of the above personalities.
His keen interest in human resource development was unique. As a beneficiary, I recollect several lectures he offered me, provision of books relative to Sports Administration/Management, telephone calls to the Tudu offices of the club, whenever he was on holidays to check on me, words of encouragement, especially when it came to diligence.
“The referee can only see his mistakes on TV after a match. But the administrator, before and after, must be sharp in all things,” so he thought and taught.
This piece would be incomplete without mentioning one incident that moved me to tears. In 2005, FIFA/CAF was organising an Advanced Administrators Instructors Course for General Secretaries and selected deputies of West African Member Associations at M Plaza under the eagle eyes of Prof. Shedad Kamal and Gen Seyi Memeni (Vice President of CAF then).
Uncle Ben asked me to see him. Personally, he drove me in his car to the venue and after some few minutes he asked me to join the participants. I wondered why he went that length, but now I know. The benefit of that seminar in my life cannot simply be quantified.
Uncle Ben, I join Global Football to mourn you.