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Opinions of Tuesday, 19 June 2018

Columnist: nanayawkesse.com

Common sense analysis that exposes gaping holes in Kwasi Nyantakyi’s statement

Former GFA President, Kwesi Nyantakyi Former GFA President, Kwesi Nyantakyi

A cursory read of the Press Statement by the former GFA President indicate that there are many issues that are even the basis for self-indictment. Ironically the press are not raising critical issues or conducting any common sense analysis so I have decided to point out just a few of the gaping holes. I have loads of respect for Mr. Kwasi Nyantaki (KN) so I’ll be kind and ignore many serious issues. Who knows? This mild analysis may help KN’s team to re-strategize.

Agency/sponsorship issues

I’ll not delve deeply into this in my quest to be mild.

However, isn’t KN’S suggestion that a sponsorship proposal be submitted for CONSIDERATION (emphasis mine) a bit curious? A league that had been without sponsorship for years! Wouldn’t a common e-mail suffice? After which representatives of both parties can sit and discuss all allied issues, an MOU is drafted and later a detailed contract that spells out all the relevant details is drafted?

Is KN also implying that even after an interested party “walks in” to sponsor a league which had been starving for sponsorship for years, an agent is still required to broker the deal? Isn’t the decision by KN to suggest otherwise a bit disingenuous?

An agent is obviously required to manage the sponsor’s interest but to ensure that the sponsor maximizes the benefits of the sponsorship and seeks the sponsor’s supreme interest, the agent is appointed by the sponsor independent of the FA.

Analysing the relationship between the FA President’s interest and the “agency tasked” to broker the deal and “an agency” tasked to manage the sponsor’s interest all seems a bit murky and provide basis for self-indictment. It doesn’t look too good.

Hacking claims

It’s a bit amateurish to hide behind hacking to extricate himself from any correspondence with the Tiger Eye team when any such hack is traceable.

Please is KN’s team implying that after such important business meetings he didn’t send any e-mail at all to confirm details of the issues discussed or even to express any appreciation for the “Sheikh’s” desire to sponsor the local league with such a whopping amount?

Common sense analysis will indicate that’s impossible.

If he didn’t, he should say so.

If he did, he should provide his copy of the mail(s).



Reimbursement claims

A few common sense questions:

When the “Sheikh” contacted KN to sponsor the local league, did he inform the GFA; the body he leads?

Was the GFA aware of his trip to meet the “Sheikh”?

Are official trips for GFA funded from his private pocket? If not, shouldn’t the FA as body present evidence of expenditure? Does the FA president expect to receive or receive re-imbursement for expenses incurred to meet potential investors from these same investors?

Did he send breakdown of his expenses for re-imbursement? If he did, can he show details of the correspondence? Is it right/ethical/proper practice by the President of the GFA to receive over the counter payments for expenses covered without receipts/documentation? There are more questions but let me leave this here.

Money laundering defense

A few common sense questions;

Doesn’t the GFA have a bank account with any bank in this country? Why should sponsorship money for sponsorship of the local league be routed through a Savings & Loans Company owned by the President of the GFA? Isn’t there a clear conflict of interest scenario? Are there not clear ethical breaches?



Bribery of $150,000

This is the most preposterous of all the issues raised in the statement and I am confident it was a typo because he couldn’t have said a measly $150,000. Maybe KN meant to say $1.5m.

This is because common sense analysis indicates that it can’t be true.

KN claimed he spent $61,000 on his trips and expenses so how much does he think the Tiger Eye team spent on this entire production?

They paid for the hotels and the cars used for airport pick-ups etc that is why they were able to plant the secret cameras and other gadgets. Let’s also factor in the flight, hotel expenditures, logistics, feeding cost and other exigencies that will obviously be incurred by the Tiger Eye crew not only in Dubai, Qatar or Morocco but for the entire year or two they used to conduct the investigation.

Let’s also factor in the $65,000 that was paid to KN. Let’s even assume without admitting that it was $40k, add that to all the other expenses incurred by the Tiger Eye team and ask yourself if the $150k bribery allegation even makes sense?

Let’s also not forget that this was a Tiger Eye-BBC Production, so why will Tiger Eye blind step the BBC which is a reputable media organization and collect a paltry $150k bribe to botch the screening which is an integral part of the investigation? Does this add up? Think! People, think!



It could also be that an opportunistic person wanted to take advantage and dupe KN. What this means is that if anyone requested a bribe of $150k from KN, the person is clearly a fraudster and ought to be arrested. We are all waiting for that name but every common sense analysis indicates that it doesn’t add up.

Rationale for publication

If you link this to the bribery allegation, it exposes the incoherence and lack of integration in the statement.

KN alleges that he believes the timing of the documentary and the investigation was meant to discredit him as a supporter of the Morocco bid. Great!

Assuming without admitting it to be true, it meant that unseen higher hands were involved in this investigation, therefore why would Tiger Eye demand a paltry $150k taking all the analysis conducted above into consideration to botch the screening of the investigation?

After this very mild and kind analysis, can Mr. Nyantakyi’s team please re-strategize?