The Ghana Football Association (GFA) says government vetted and approved the payment of $100,000 as appearance fees for the kit manager of the Black Stars at the 2014 World Cup which has caused an uproar.
The GFA revealed that the payment to the kit manager of the team has been the practice since the country qualified for the 2006 World Cup and same mode was applied at the 2010 World Cup.
The payment sparked furore this week when Ghana's 2014 World Cup presidential commission report into their group-stage exit described the role of the kit manager as a 'ball boy'.
Because the Brazil 2014 World Cup Commission of Inquiry says he earned $100,000 US Dollars for just catching and throwing balls in his capacity as BALL BOY for the Black Stars there was anger among Ghanaians.
However, the GFA says the kit manager's role is not catching and throwing balls insisting his job is crucial to the successes of the Black Stars and the payments to him are legal and approved by government.
"It is apparent that the description of the kit manager as a 'ball boy' is calculated to bring disaffection for the person in charge of the position even though his role is key for the highly-tuned professionals to perform at the top-level," the GFA said in a statement on Friday night.
"While the commission is seeking to mock the person, the position or his role in the team, it must be made clear that the payment of the appearance fees to the kit manager was made after government vetted and approved it.
"And this is not the preserve of the Black Stars team for the 2014 World Cup. The same system was applied for the 2006 World Cup and 2010 World Cup in Germany and South Africa respectively."
The kit manager's official position is the equipment officer and his job schedule is not to catch and throw balls as the world has been mischievously made to believe.
The equipment officer plays one of the most pivotal behind-the-scene roles in the Black Stars.
It is mischievous, misleading and demeaning for anybody to limit his role to what is seen during training "as just catching and throwing" balls. In fact, other members of the technical team also "catch and throw balls" during training.
Ishmael, the equipment officer the world is mocking, is in charge of sorting and maintaining the team's equipment such as training wear, leisure wear, boots and match-day kits. He sorts by providing the right colour blend for leisure and training and on match days.
He maintains by visiting every delegation member's room and collecting their wears for laundry after training and match days. Ishmael's role as equipment officer prior to match days and on match days are even more crucial.
Prior to match days, he is responsible for sorting out the right jersey size for each player and also ensures that correct names and numbers are embossed on each jersey. He dares not make a mistake in this important task.
It must adhere to FIFA or CAF marketing and branding regulations to ensure that the country does not cop huge fines for violating these regulations.
The equipment officer is also one of those who attend the match coordinating meeting; what we normally call pre-match meeting in Ghana. He goes there to display the team's colours for the day.
On match days, he leaves for the stadium at least two hours before the team arrives. He goes there early to arrange every player's kit and boots in the dressing room for TV footage.