George Afriyie’s bid for the 2023 Ghana Football Association (GFA) presidential elections has encountered a setback as his appeal against disqualification has been rejected.
Earlier this month, Afriyie was disqualified by the Elections Committee for not meeting the criteria outlined in Article 13(2)(j) of the Ghana Football Association statutes for 2019.
Additionally, he failed to secure the required support from fellow GFA members.
While Afriyie did file an appeal, the Appeals Committee has upheld the initial decision, effectively barring him from participating in the upcoming election.
In his appeal, dated September 8, 2023, George Kwasi Afriyie contested the Elections Committee’s decision to disqualify him as a candidate for the GFA presidency.
The Appeals Committee conducted a thorough review, examining all pertinent documents, including Afriyie’s submissions, the Elections Committee’s ruling, video footage of Afriyie’s vetting, and interviews conducted by the Elections Committee.
The primary question was whether George Kwasi Afriyie’s disqualification was justified.
Afriyie argued that the Elections Committee had six members instead of the required five.
However, the Appeals Committee clarified that the sixth individual mentioned by Afriyie was the GFA’s in-house lawyer, who played an administrative role and did not alter the panel’s composition.
Furthermore, Afriyie claimed to have submitted six GFA member endorsements for his nomination, but the Appeals Committee found that he had provided only five valid endorsements, as per the standard nomination form, which allowed for a maximum of five endorsements.
The Elections Committee’s decision to disqualify Afriyie hinged largely on an endorsement from Victory Club Warriors F/C, which was deemed invalid due to the signatory, Mr. Jeffery Asare, not being a director of the club or an authorised signatory officially registered with the GFA.
Despite Afriyie’s arguments, the Appeals Committee upheld the Elections Committee’s verdict.
Consequently, George Afriyie is no longer in contention for the GFA presidency in the forthcoming elections, leaving the incumbent President Kurt Okraku as the sole candidate.