"I did not see or sign any contact document" - Player

Accra, Sept 16, GNA- Robert Boateng, a player of Asante Kotoko told the player transfer Commission of Inquiry in Accra on Thursday that he never saw or singed any contract agreement when Kotoko transferred him to Rssenburg of Norway.

Narrating his side of the story, Boateng said he only signed a document presented to him by Mr Kwabena Agyepong, then member of the Kotoko Management which stated that he would be managed by an agent, Mr Wilgodt Anderson while with Rossenburg in Norway.

He said before he left for Norway, he had other offers from France and Turkey but he was persuaded to go to Norway by George Adusei Poku, (Georgido) then Chief Executive of Kotoko that he would be entitled to 10 per cent of the contract sum. Boateng said, he left for Norway in July 1997 adding that he only lived on his monthly salary of 1,500 dollars.

He said after waiting for four months without receiving his enticement fee, he confronted the management of his foreign club who asked him to contact the agent. Boateng said since it was difficult getting in touch with Mr Anderson because he was in Sweden, he phoned Georgido in Ghana who assured him that he (Georgido) would make sure that he (Boateng) was paid.

He said after several attempts to get his enticement fee, the agent sent an initial 9,000 dollars and later added 80,000 dollars through his brother in Ghana. Asked whether he collected any other money, Boateng said the Ghana Football Association later gave him 5,000 dollars in December 1997 believed to have been the 10 per cent Georgido promised.

He said, he later learnt that 250,000 dollars said to be his transfer fee came to the GFA and it was disbursed among Kotoko, Goldfield and one other agency with only 5,000 dollars left for him. He said he got to know that his foreign club were paying him 60,000 kroner a month through the agent's bank account in Sweden but he only remitted him an mount equivalent to 1,500 dollars a month.

Asked under cross-examination to produce the contract document, Georgido, could not do so. He only tendered into evidence a memorandum of understanding of sharing the contract sum 50-50 between Kotoko and Mr Anderson (the agent). Georgido at an earlier sitting admitted that the sum was 800,000 dollars of which the player was to receive 200,000 dollars as his enticement fee.

He said he declared 250,000 dollars to the then board members because 50,000 dollars of Kotoko's share of 300,000 dollars was used to defray expenses when the club participated in an under-20 tournament in Sweden at that time. Being cross-examined by Joe Ringo, a representative of Swedru All Blacks on the transfer of Baba Amando, Georgido said the player was transferred to Dubai last year for 250,000 dollars.

He explained that though the player was transferred for 300,000 dollars, the foreign club refused to pay the money on grounds that Amando had failed to score a goal in three matches. Georgido said it was then that they were compelled to agree on the new fee, which was the 250,000 dollars. Asked into which account he transferred the money, he said into his private account in London.

He told the commission that he was not in a position to produce the first contract agreement document because it was stolen together with his briefcase while in transit in Holland. Mr Emmanuel Kojo Adu, past Chairman of Kotoko Board of Directors told the Commission that he never transferred any player during his tenure of office.

He said that there were some spill-over from the previous administration with regard to the transfer of Prince Amoako to Peru and Abu Saeed to the United Arab Emirate. Mr Adu said 75,000 dollars being the first instalment of Amoako's 150,000 dollars transfer fee was paid into the clubs account.

He said Alhaji Binbo of Mamobi Youth, who was Saeed's manager gave Kotoko 15,000 dollars cash as being the player's contract sum. Mr Adu said he was later made to understand that Saeed contract sum was 20,000 dollars but the player collected 5,000 dollars before the rest was be paid to Kotoko.

He said Saeed was asked to write and explain why he took the money and also to apologise which he did. The Commission subpoenaed Mr Kwabena Agyepong to appear before it to throw more light on the undertaken he made Boateng to sign with the agent. Sitting continues.