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Sports News of Tuesday, 21 August 2018

Source: 3news.com

Ghana is not an island, hence, our agreement with FIFA – Deputy AG

Deputy Attorney General, Joseph Kpemka Deputy Attorney General, Joseph Kpemka

Deputy Attorney General, Joseph Kpemka says government’s decision to rescind the move to dissolve the Ghana Football Association (GFA) was borne out of the fact that Ghana cannot operate in isolation of international bodies it has engagements with.

He noted that, once you enter into an agreement with FIFA, it is important to comply with the rules and regulations of the agreement.

The decision by government to dissolve the GFA was as a result of an investigative piece by ace investigative journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas which captured some officials of the association receiving bribes.

This decision was later rescinded following a threat by FIFA to ban Ghana from participating in international tournaments.

Read: Fifa gives Ghana 2-wk ultimatum to withdraw court case against GFA

Read: Ghana reaches deal with FIFA to escape ban; court case against GFA to be withdrawn

Speaking on 3FM’s Sunrise morning show on Monday, August 20, Mr. Kpemka said government made the right decision by agreeing with the terms of FIFA.

“We are living not as an island, but we live among a comity of nations and our membership of international organizations are predicated on principles, on rules, on regulations, and on law.”

He added, “And so far as you subscribe to an international organization, then you must again agree with the principles, rules, and regulations governing that international organization. That’s a basic fact, so fundamental to any agreement that anybody can actually reach.”

He said as a responsible government, they acted based on public reaction to the content of the investigative piece.

“There was pent-up feelings and massive accumulation of anger, an out pouring of anger by many Ghanaians. In fact, it was like a mere unanimous decision and verdict by Ghanaians that something radical ought to be done by leadership in this country to cleanse the football association of the ills that have been perceived earlier.”

According to Mr. Kpemka, government went through the right legal process to deal with the issue.

“We invoked the appropriate sections of law which is the legal system in our country, and we decided that by the official Liquidations Act, we could actually invoke certain sections of it to say that the company was formed and it was been used for a purpose either than what it was intended for, and so we then petitioned the court to order a dissolution.”