The February hotel served as the setting this Thursday for the annual ordinary congress of the Togolese Football Federation. For more than four hours, several resolutions were carried out including the financial report for the past financial year, the approval of the 2023 budget, the election of a member of the disciplinary committee and the approval of a motion made to the head of the State, Faure Gnassingbé.
This Thursday, members of the FTF and Togolese football players were invited to the annual ordinary congress of the highest football body in Togo. This meeting allowed members to approve the budget for 2023, which amounts to 3,201,500,000 CFA francs against 2,755. 500,000 CFA francs from the previous year, an increase of 16.18%. It is with the aim of revitalizing and developing sports infrastructure, including the construction of a technical center, the popularization of beach soccer and especially grassroots football that the FTF has drawn up this budget. And besides, it is a budget that received the consent of the congressmen who voted 51 votes in favor. The delegates also gave the FTF a mandate to study the possibility of creating sub-districts in the communes issued by the Lomé-Golfe league. This session was sanctioned by a press briefing moderated by the chairman of the steering committee, Wilson Tété Bahun and the general secretary of the FTF, Hervé Agbodan. This is an opportunity for the Secretary General to come back to some essential points of this congress: ‹‹ We made several resolutions as always. There were hearings, a motion to the Head of State to thank him for his vision and all that he brings to Togolese football and to seek his attention for professional football because the path will be long and full of pitfalls. All the actors here are aware of these elements. Infrastructures, the transformation of associations into sports societies. These are elements on which we agree. And we have shown it in documents to whom it may concern and encourage the Head of State to continue so that within 4 years we can really talk about the professionalism of football. We have also made communications on a certain number of projects which are currently in progress at the FTF and it is necessary to share this information with the members. And these are projects that will amaze the future of Togolese football so it is necessary >>, did he declare.
For the chairman of the steering committee, Maître Wilson Tété Bahun, it was important to come back to the reasons why it is necessary to transfer necessarily to a sports society in Togo by leaving the amateur framework ‹‹ It’s a milestone to cross otherwise tomorrow, our football will disappear. It’s clear amateurism is over. You have to go to professional clubs. We have to save the clubs, we have to save the club presidents, we have to save the players. We cannot stay in this state. In all respects, the other countries have surpassed us. Sometimes it’s pity. Otherwise, with each passing day, we are stepping back and here is the professionalization project that is coming and we are all frightened by what we say to ourselves that we must start with the infrastructures. But the time to put the infrastructure in place, it can take 2 or 4 years. Do we have to wait? Let’s take the bulls by the horns and then we will show the State that we are ready, we have to support us in terms of infrastructure. At the level of the steering committee, we have listed the fields on which we can play at least. We start the professional championship and Little by little it is the state budget that will allow to set up the infrastructures ››, he explained.
It should be noted that Majesty Awoutey was elected member of the Disciplinary Committee at this ordinary congress with 43 votes in favor.