Kotoko CEO fingered in latest bribery scandal in Normalisation Committee Special Competition

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Kumasi Asante Kotoko Sporting Club, Dr Kwame Kyei has been named in a latest bribery saga that has rocked Ghana football.

The business tycoon is said to have provided an amount of GH¢ 17000 to be given to a Tamale-based referee, Ali Alhassan who was to officiate Kotoko’s crucial away game against AshantiGold in Obuasi last Sunday in week eleven of the Normalization Committee Special Competition.

The said amount was delivered to the referee through his right-hand man and self acclaimed Operations Officer of Kumasi Asante Kotoko, Hon. Shishila, aided by a retired referee, Techiman-based Kakabo Mensah at the STC Yard in Tamale on the eve of the game.

The match however ended one nil against the Porcupine Warriors.

The cover of the heinous dealing was blown after Hon. Shishila pestered the retired referee, Kakabo Mensah for a refund of the said cash for referee Ali Alhassan’s failure to “do the job”, which consequently resulted in Kotoko’s humiliating defeat.

“It is true; I was in Techiman when contacted me that he wanted to meet the referees for the game, that is Ali Alhassan and his colleagues who were in Tamale, so I should let them come down to Techiman so that we could meet and talk to them concerning the match”, retired referee Kakabo Mensah confirmed to Sunyani-based Nimdee FM in an interview monitored by MyNewsGh.com.

According to Kakabo Mensah, the referees said they could not travel down to Techiman from Tamale for the meeting, so “I was there when Shishila came with a Nissan Versa salon car with registration number AS 5988-18 and begged me to follow him to Tamale to talk to the referees; so we went and met them at the Tamale STC Yard, where he gave them a huge amount of money concealed in a polyethylene bag, though he didn’t not disclose the exact amount to me”.

“So we returned to Techiman after giving the money to the referees and Shishila gave me GHC 500 and we parted ways; so he called me at the end of the match the following day that my people didn’t do the job so I should call them to refund the money, but before calling me he had already called the referees, who had told him they had already spent part of the booty on transportation and other expenses but Shishila insisted that the return the money by all means because he gave them GHC 8000 or he makes them hot by going to air with the matter” he revealed.

“Everybody knows Shishila is the Operations Manager for Dr Kwame Kyei and that he is a member of Kotoko operations team; what we are talking about is the Kotoko game against AshGold in which they lost by one goal”, Kakabo Mensah told the host.

Kakabo Mensah has however expressed worry that his name is being tarnished by Shishila that he was the one that took the money, but however maintains that, he “was only offering help to the team because he is retired now and has no links with the Normalization Committee”, hinting that, he would call a press conference to “spill all that happened and expose them”.

Though Shishila is chasing the referees for a refund of GH¢8000, our independent checks have revealed that the actual amount that he was given by Dr Kwame Kyei to be given to the referees was GH¢ 17000, for which the businessman has asked him for a refund since his team lost the match.

It appears that no lessons have been learnt from the recent embarrassment that rocked Ghana football following Tiger Eye PI’s expose dubbed “number 12” that unearthed massive corruption in African football.

The matter is currently before the Referees Association of Ghana (RAG); Chairman of RAG, Retired Referee Joe Debrah has told MyNewsGh.com that investigations would be launched into the matter and that the officials could be banned if they are found culpable.

He said, both referee Ali Alhassan and dr. kwame Kyei has denied ever receiving or giving any bribe respectively.

The audio tape of Kakabo’s interview has been obtained by RAG.

Below are the referees who officiated the AshGold-Kotoko Match who have been accused of taken bribe to influence the outcome

1. Ali Alhassan – Referee

2. Mohammed Issahaku – Asst. 1

3. Mustapha Abdulai – Asst. 2

4. Opoku A. Gabriel – 4th referee