Cameroon’s Alex Song urged the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to scrap the Africa Cup of Nations to stop the spread of the Ebola virus.
Song, who is on loan at West Ham from Barcelona, said that football had to be a lower priority to the greater well-being of the population of Africa. An epidemic of the Ebola virus has been ravaging west Africa since December 2013, particularly in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, with almost 5,000 people having died from the disease.
The Africa Cup of Nations is billed to be held Morocco in January but the country is having a serious rethink because of the Ebola outbreak while CAF is quietly overtures to countries like South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria and other countries to take up the hosting in case Morocco reneges.
“If calling it off is the way to stop the spread of the virus then we have to do it,” Song said. “When you watch the TV you don’t know where it is going next.” CAF has so far refused Morocco’s requests to postpone the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations with the two parties set to meet again on November 3. But Song believes African players around the world need to stand together to make a difference.
“We have a lot of African players here in the UK – and around in the world – if we can find a solution together to help the people we have to do it,” the 27-year-old midfielder said.
