Investigate Referee Idrisu’s decisions

The management of Accra Hearts of Oak has called on the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to investigate the circumstances that led to certain decisions by referee Ibrahim Idrisu of Tamale in their 19th week encounter against Asante Kotoko in Kumasi, Ashanti Region, on 16 September 2001.

According to them, this has become necessary as a result of revelations of alleged impropriety made against some officials of Kotoko by referee J. D. K. Essel in the famous “Charles Taylor Yellow Card Saga”.

In a letter addressed to the GFA Secretariat and signed by the Administrative Manager of Hearts, Mr Tettey Oku, the club suggests that Referee Essel’s revelation should lead to further investigations by the football controlling body.

The letter said it is obvious that a lot more might have happened in the past “which should prompt a review of referee Idrisu’s action in the match against Kotoko”. Hearts of Oak also mentioned the 25th minute incident in the said match in which by their estimation, the referee acted strangely.

According to the letter, the referee whistled for an infringement against Dan Acquah of Kotoko on Hearts Ishmael Addo; but apart from shifting the area of incidence, their independent investigations revealed that the referee recorded a yellow card caution against Ishmael Addo’s name although he won the infringement.

Hearts said their request is not meant to change or correct the referee’s decision, but rather to call for a second look at the clip of that match to determine whether that particular act merits further investigations in the wake of Mr Essel’s revelations. They therefore pledged their total cooperation and added that they would make a copy of the clip available upon request to the GFA.