Tema Youth President Wilfred Kwaku Osei Palmer’s appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the Ghana Football Association has been dismissed.
The appeal sought to nullify the Presidential election of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) held in October 2019. He accused the GFA of disqualifying him unfairly from the election as he headed to CAS to seek a redress.
CAS insists that the GFA led by Kurt Edwin Okraku will complete its four-year tenure without interruption.
“The appeal filed on 14th October 2019 by Mr Wilfred Kwaku Osei against the Ghana Football Association (GFA) with respect to the decision rendered on 4th October 2019, respectively 8th October 2019 by the Elections Committee of the Respondent is dismissed,” CAS stated in its five-point ruling.
“The decision rendered on 4th October 2019, respectively 8th October 2019 by the GFA Elections Committee of the Respondent are confirmed.
“The costs of the arbitration, to be determined and served to the parties by CAS Court Office, and shall be borne by Mr. Wilfred Kwaku Osei.
“Each party shall bear its own costs in connection with the arbitration proceedings.
“All other or further claims are dismissed.”
Osei Palmer initially launched an appeal at the Normalisation Committee and later to CAS after his request was dismissed at national level.
The bribery and corruption scandal in the GFA led by then president Kwesi Nyantakyi led to the presidential seat being vacant in 2018. Temporarily, a FIFA/CAF Normalisation Committee for football was put in place to run sports in the country.
Osei Palmer applied filed an application to run for office, but was disqualified on the recommendation of the Elections Vetting Committee for breaching financial regulations involving a player of his second-tier club who played in the Ghana Premier League (GPL) until 2017.