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Exceptional investigative journalist with an odium for football

From the extracts of an exclusive interview by Pulse.com.gh's Betty Kankam-Boadu, Kwame Boakye takes a look into Anas Aremeyaw Anas' football world

Ghana in the eyes of God: a headline that took over the entire nation in the later parts of 2015. Ghanaians shivered with the realization of a crumbling judiciary system which was supposed to be efficient and impartial. A place of solace in times of injustice had inadvertently been ripped off its prestige with corruption.

Never again will the same trust be given to the judiciary system, it seemed at the time. And up until now, judgments over whether the judiciary system in the country can be trusted is divided in the minds of the over 27 million people in Ghana.

One thing is for certain though. Anas Aremeyaw Anas did name, he did shame and for the immediate or long term future, maybe jail part of his mission will come to pass.

The aim of Anas Aremeyaw Anas doing undercover journalism to name, shame and jail is a popular knowledge for the numbers.

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Now for the times when the renowned international journalist is not busily pretending to be Catholic priest in Bangkok or a menial worker at Eurofood, how does Anas Aremeyaw Anas leisure around?

The world of entertainment keeps advancing with progressing technological inventions. One could have an entire range of movies or television shows on their Smart TV in their Smart Living Room and the entertaining capabilities are unlimited.

That is not your typical Anas Aremeyaw Anas who will probably prefer reading a book at the library. But there had to be something since reading at the library is an integral part of his research process during a case.

Generally the topic of what Anas does during his free time [supposing he had some free time] was one too broad and covered a larger perspective.

When the subject matter was narrowed down to what every man is arguably supposed to like, the answer was shocking considering the extent which Anas Aremeyaw Anas went to avoid it.

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Football is a sport considered to be liked by many but Anas Aremeyaw Anas fervently affirms his distaste of 22 men chasing an air-filled spherical object for a minimum of 90 minutes.

For a journalist, covering a football game at a point in his career was a high probability and Anas did come across that scenario. How he handled it throws a fair picture of his hate for the game.

“I remember Ghana was playing in Germany and I was in Germany and was supposed to report. I went to the stadium and I stayed outside the stadium and wrote my story from outside the stadium because football is just not it for me. I don’t get it,” the investigative journalist in a calm voice said.

For the reason of Anas Aremeyaw Anas writing a football match report like an undercover work is explained when Pulse.com.gh went into the sports mind of the Ghanaian.

Anas Aremeyaw Anas revealed:

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“I don't like saying this but I hate football. I have never liked it. I don’t understand why people get so worked up when their teams … the only time you see me watching football is when Ghana is playing another country and perhaps I have colleagues and they have sent me messages because I have to reply to them so I have to know the score, but I am not a football person.”

He goes on to find some connection, naming without shaming [pun intended] the only thing he loves in what is considered by many as the beautiful game.

“The only thing perhaps I enjoy when it comes to football is its history and mysticism when it comes to Africa and the footballers and what they do.” Anas says he will read about them and “have a good laugh”.

The ‘hate’ for football was intensely established when Anas Aremeyaw Anas confessed in all his undertakings, his visit to a stadium for a football game only came during his primary school days at the military barracks.

Anas elaborated:

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“In my entire life I have never been to the Accra sports stadium to watch football before. Neither have I been to any other stadium to watch.

“The only time I went to the stadium was when I was in primary school at the military barracks and we go to the El Wak Stadium. So if you see me seeing any stadium, I’ve seen on television.”

However, the entire sports world was not something the renowned international journalist frowned at as he boldly declared:

“I would always pick basketball over football.”

So for a man who has never liked football, where does the anticipation of hopefuls who seek for Anas Aremeyaw Anas to one day release an undercover work on the Ghana Football Association who have been accused of corruption many times rank in his priorities?

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For the investigative journalist, there is ‘nothing too far, nothing too near’ but the earlier topic of him investigating the Ghana Football Association was an answer to a question. He said at the time that he would investigate if the need be. Anas never ‘picked on the GFA’.

An encounter with Anas Aremeyaw Anas has mostly been dominated with the next undercover job or the previous named and shamed.

On a different perspective, Pulse.com.gh has disclosed: Anas Aremeyaw Anas, exceptional investigative journalist with an odium for football.

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