Eq. Guinea saves africa ...

In the most spectacular of saves, Equatorial
Guinea have swooped in to spare CAF’s
embarrassment. The tiny coastal nation will host
the 2015 Afcon on the shortest of notices, just
three years after the continent rocked up on its
shores in a co-hosting effort with neighbours
Gabon.
The overriding emotion is one of relief. Ivorian
captain Yaya Toure was right, uncertainty over
the tournament can weigh on the players’ focus.
Look for example at Morocco’s friendly against
Benin; initially scheduled in preparation for next
year’s tournament, it was rendered academic by
CAF’s decision to strip the North African nation of
the hosting rights.
To their credit though, the erstwhile hosts were
professional in a 6-1 demolition.
CAF deserve credit for their quick thinking in
dealing with Morocco’s decision to hold off on
hosting the tournament in light of public health
concerns. Hayatou flew into Equatorial Guinea
only on Friday morning to meet with President
Teodoro Obiang Nguema, and an agreement was
quickly struck.
Capital Malabo and largest city Bata will play
host to matches, as in 2012. Also pegged as host
cities are Mongomo and Ebebiyin, the latter can
only hold 5000 people though, hardly the
Maracana. That said, beggars cannot be
choosers. What about the spectacle, the
atmosphere, you say? Fie!
That CAF has been forced into this position
speaks of the paranoia that has swept the
continent since the outbreak of Ebola earlier this
year. Morocco are understandably wary of
endangering their own population, and cannot be
faulted for prioritising human life.
However, throwing the baby out with the
bathwater is a tad extreme, especially considering
Morocco have been hosting Afcon hopefuls
Guinea during the qualifying series as a direct
consequence of Ebola.
Equatorial Guinea appear to have no such
concerns. Indeed, the common refrain among
observers since the announcement has been the
prohibitive cost of attending the 2012 tournament
and their trepidation over returning. This is an
inconvenience, but might it also serve as the sort
of crowd control Morocco could only have
dreamed of?
Speaking of crowd control, the tiny nation of just
over 600,000 might find itself tainted by
associative nomenclature. A fair few on social
media, even within the African continent, have
been unable to distinguish between it and west
African nation Guinea, who are grappling to
curtail the spread of the deadly virus.
Teodoro Obiang |
Rescues Caf at the last minute
So, aside from lesser risk from (probably)
significantly less of the local and international
media, what are the perks for the former Spanish
colony? Make no mistake, this is Africa; favours
are repaid, it is intrinsic to the nature of the
continent’s people.
The advantages are hard to picture from their
perspective, but a closer look at the furtive
workings of CAF with regard to revenue from
previous editions gives you some idea. There has
very rarely been much accountability from the
opaque gerontocracy that Hayatou presides over
from Cairo to the rest of the continent.
Take into account also the fact that, unlike
previous hosts, there will not be as much
preparation in building or refurbishing stadium
infrastructure. Equatorial Guinea will actually be
able to get away with whatever shabbiness they
serve up on the excuse of short notice; they are
set to reap a vast financial reward for doing as
little as possible.
Also on the footballing side, the new hosts come
off quite well. After overcoming Mauritania 3-1 in
the First Round of qualifying in June, their
penchant for naturalising players of foreign
nationality caught up with and saw them
disqualified. Apparently, their FA had failed to file
the requisite paperwork for Cameroon-born striker
Thierry Fidjeu, an act of carelessness that had
precedent in the qualifying series for the 2014
Fifa World Cup as well.
From outcasts to hosts, quite the turn-around and
not so much as a tap on the wrist for
wrongdoing. The Nzalang Nacional will strut their
stuff on the continent, and we will be grateful to
our new hosts for sparing the continent the
discomfort of having her flagship tournament
postponed, or worse played on another continent.