Former President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kwesi Nyantakyi has responded to the numerous allegations leveled against him since the latest investigative piece of Anas Aremeyaw Anas was made public.
Mr Nyantakyi in a press statement, painstakingly disclosed how he was framed by Anas and his team and was asked to pay $150k [$150,000] to drop the videos on him.
Read the full statement from below:
1. INTRODUCTION
Good morning media and fellow Ghanaians.
Thank you for the opportunity you have offered to listen and consider my responses to the investigative report on corruption in Football in Ghana by Anas Aremeyaw Anas and his Tiger Eye PI team.
From the outset, let me state that I do not support corruption in any form. It is counterproductive and undermines the credibility of any endeavor.
In the same vein, I will condemn any premeditated and deliberately contrived scheme as well as any prejudicial piece of work undertaken under the guise of fighting corruption only for purposes of pursuing the private agenda of people intended to tarnish my reputation and cause disaffection for me among members of the general public.
2. APOLOGY.
I wish to first and foremost render an unqualified apology to the following very distinguished personalities. They are;
1.H.E the President of the Republic of Ghana.
2.H.E. the Vice President of the Republic of Ghana. iii. H.E the former President of the Republic of Ghana. iv. Ministers and Deputy Ministers of State.
3.Senior Government Officials.
4.Members of the NPP and NDC, and
vii. The Football Family.
I owe them my deepest apologies because in my interaction with the supposed Sheikh from Qatar and his agents, I made comments that were not responsible for having regard to my stature and experience. Those comments resulted from a poor exercise of discretion arising on the spur of the moment and in the circumstances in which I interacted with the supposed Sheikh and his agents. I think I was carried away by the lies represented to me. I am deeply sorry for the inconveniences my unguarded utterances have caused you.
I also apologize to well-meaning and discerning Ghanaians, who I have by virtue of my indiscretion offended.
I extend the same level of apology to my family, friends and associates for the anguish and hardship this issue has created for them.
3. FACTS
In or about September 2017, Mr. Abdulai Alhassan (Mr. Alhassan), then Chairman of the Northern Region Football Association called and informed me that a certain Sheikh Al-Thani of Qatar (Sheikh) had expressed the interest in sponsoring the Ghana Premier League for $5m per annum for 3 years. Mr. Alhassan explained that information about the Sheikh’s interest in sponsoring the Ghana Premier League got to him from a certain Mr. Ahmed Hussein Suale (Suale) who is based in Qatar and Dubai. Mr. Alhassan told me that he knew Mr. Suale in Tamale and believed that the offer was genuine. He further informed me that Mr. Suale had been working with the Sheikh for at least 7 years for which reason the offer was worth considering.
Based on the representations Suale/Alhassan/I at Coco Vanilla (a restaurant at Adjiriganor, Accra) where we discussed the subject. During the meetings Mr. Suale confirmed to both Mr. Alhassan and I that:
(i) Sheikh Al-Thani wanted to set up an oil refinery in Ghana.
(ii) That as a businessman, Sheikh Al-Thani had similar investments in Cote D’Ivoire, Botswana, Lesotho and other parts of Africa.
(iii) The Sheikh Al-Thani was the majority shareholder of their family business known as MedGulf Construction Limited.
Mr. Suale further said that in 2016, Sheikh had initiated a similar move to establish an oil refinery in Ghana. He had held discussions with the previous Government.
Mr. Suale then told us that the Sheikh gave $8m in financial support to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) political party and the then President, John Mahama in December 2016 for the General Elections.
Mr. Suale also said that the Sheikh was ready to offer financial support to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in mitigation of expenses incurred in the run-up to the 2016 General Elections. He then sought our advice.
I responded by saying that if Sheikh Al-Thani spent $8m on a party that had lost Elections, it makes sense to spend the same amount or more on the party that won the election. I further stated that the President, Vice President, Ministers and Deputy Ministers all came out of a costly election so in making the provision to offer financial support to the party, he should donate to the NPP party:
•$5m in the name of (not to) the President
•$3m in the name of (not to) the Vice President • $2m in the name of (not to) Minister and
•$1m in the name of (not to) Deputy Minister
I advised that these amounts should be paid to the NPP party subject to the political parties law. These statements were made in the spirit of a general discussion and were made believing that all present were genuine and credible.
Subsequently, Suale and I met the supposed Sheikh in Dubai where I was tricked to repeat the donations in the name of the above officials. I did not know that I was being recorded. I certainly would have exercised a better discretion if I knew I was being recorded.
I would request that, Tiger Eye does us a favour by playing the full videos/audios of all the meetings held with Suale. The only occasion I met the supposed Sheihk was the meeting in Dubai.
The video/audio presented to the public cannot be appreciated outside the context of all the meetings and discussions held.
Now, after the meetings at Coco Vanilla, Accra, Mr. Suale confirmed that Sheikh Al-Thani wanted to meet us in Dubai. They offered to provide pre-paid air tickets. Mr. Suale, however, subsequently advised that the Sheikh had requested that I pre-finance the trip and be reimbursed.
I agreed and travelled to Dubai. I did not meet the Sheikh as promised. I paid for my ticket and hotel for the trip. Mr. Suale then arranged a second trip which was the only occasion I met the supposed Sheikh.
Mr Suale provided me with an outboard air ticket (Dubai- Cairo) only contrary to an earlier agreement to finance an all round trip for me (Accra-Dubai-Accra). Its clearly discernible that apart from a partial leg of the trips I was owed for the rest of airfares board and lodging which were incurred at the request of Mr Suale.
There was, however, a third trip the circumstances of which are unrelated to me personally although the Sheikh again requested through Mr. Suale that I pre-finance the trip to be reimbursed later. Since this trip does not relate to me personally, I do not think it necessary to disclose its details. I also paid for this trip.
It was during my second trip to Dubai that the Sheikh gave me $40,000.00 as reimbursement for the air tickets I pre-financed for my two(2) trips and the third trip.
It must be emphasized that I did not receive any other monies from the Sheikh for any other purpose.
I did not receive any monies for myself or on behalf of the President, the Vice President or any other senior Government official. Let me also clarify that H.E the President, H.E. the Vice President, Ministers and Deputy Ministers and Senior Government Officials had no prior knowledge or subsequent knowledge of all the discussions contained in the video.
Source: Peacefmonline.com
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wooooow!Interesting.Nice attempt. so why didn't you voice out all these when you were arrested by the police. yooo... we hear you nana Nyantakyi.
Did Nyantekyi DREAM this concerted, face saving lies to us. We do not have SAND in our heads! We all saw what you said and did in the video. I urge the gov to TOTALLY probe these GFA and the CORRUPT officials!
Remember Nyantekyi has helped Ghana to qualify for the World cup for three consecutive times. Also, the U-20 won the World in Egypt. As human as we are we all have our weaknesses so if he got himself into trouble let's take it easy and let's be circumspect. Anas went after Nyantekyi due to the perception of bribery. Therefore, it was expected of him to record natural cases and not artificial or stage managed.
Anas is a fraudster and must be charged with false pretense and money laundering. It looks like Anas hates Nyantekyi so much that even if he has license to kill Nyantekyi he will do it. Because of one person he could spend huge sums of money with his scammers to get him. What authority has Anas got in Ghana that he can entrap, shame, blackmail and order Banks to render accounts of his victims without the court's order. Is Ghana is serious as a nation? [Remember what Prez Trump said} Doctored tapes without the security agents verifying? Is Anas above the law? BBC financing Anas? How come the BBC can not encourage Anas to entrap England FA? The British Prime Minister except Ghana and Africa?
Anas must release the unedited video, devoid of commentary, KwasiNyantakyi has dared him. If Anas did a clean job, he must release it.
Nyantakyi thinks Ghanaians have sand in our heads huh???
Going through some of the comments make me sick. Anas can be corrupt however much he wants and people doesn't care. Why are we glossing over the corrupt allegations against him as well. Is it not fair to find out if indeed Anas gave $65k, which is being disproved by Nyantakyi. And who funded Nyantakyi's plane ticket? Is it true Anas demanded $150k to expunde his name from the video??
a corrupt man will always be a corupt,plsssssssss let focus
Who in Ghana does not know that Nyantakyie is corrupt? This attempt to mitigate his guilt is infantile and stu---pi-d. These people have always hidden behind the long skirts of the law . So anyone says he is corrupt and he hauls you before the law courts where his kind would ask you to provide evidence. The poor Ghanaian who steals a fowl is sentenced with the speed of lightening to 6 years in jail. Folks those of you who watched the videos know what you saw and heard.Use the stuff the good Lord put in your cranium.Don't blindly follow the lead of that creep Kennedy Agyepong. The man is scared to high heavens that one of these days a video of his not so legal activities will emerge so his attempt to discredit Anas . Is this the first time Anas has done this type of job? Remember the case of the judges ? Does Nyantakyie or Kennedy Agyepong know more law than those guys? Most of them left quietly because they did not want to embarrass their families more than they had already done. The pluck of this Nyantakyie guy is amazing .He must think we all have sawdust where our brains ought to be.
NYANTAKYI CAN'T ***barred word*** US BECAUSE HE THINKS OUR SYSTEM IS REALLY WEAK AND INSTEAD OF GHANAIANS BEING PATRIOTIC, SHOW LOVE FOR THEIR COUNTRY FIRST, THEY RATHER LOVE THEIR POLITICAL PARTIES RATHER... I MEAN LOOK AT HOW THE COUNTRY IS GOING, CORRUPTION EVERYWHERE AND WE HAVE PEOPLE COMING TO DEFEND THE GOVERNMENT AND THE PRESIDENT???... IT IS INDEED HEARTBREAKING AND WE NEED TO RISE UP... GOD BLESS OUR HOMELAND GHANA