The Executive Council of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) has unanimously suspended AshantiGold Sporting Club with immediate effect under Article 17(1) of the GFA Statutes.
This decision was taken due to the club’s dealing with banned officials Kwaku Frimpong and Emmanuel Frimpong, which constitutes a serious violation of both GFA Statutes and the FIFA Statutes.
Kwaku Frimpong and Emmanuel Frimpong have been banned by the GFA Disciplinary Committee for 10 years and eight years respectively for engaging in match manipulations.
The decisions were subsequently upheld by the GFA Appeals Committee.
The two banned officials did not appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) as required by both the GFA Statutes and the FIFA Statutes and the time for filing such an appeal had long expired, said a statement from the FA.
However, AshantiGold SC continues to deal with and engage with the two banned officials in violation of Articles 9, 13 and 16 of the GFA Statutes and the relevant provisions of the FIFA Statutes.
It would be recalled that only 22 players have filed appeals and temporary measure (a stay of execution) at CAS, which have been granted by CAS.
The GFA have accordingly allowed the players to register and play in GFA and international competitions until the final determination of their cases by CAS.
The suspension of AshantiGold SC means the club shall lose all membership rights and that the club cannot play in any football competition, including but not limited to the Ashanti Regional Football Association Division Two League.
In accordance with both the GFA Statutes and FIFA Statutes, the GFA, members of the GFA, clubs, players, referees and all participants in football ‘shall not deal and engage in any football related activities (administrative, sporting, etc) with the suspended AshantiGold SC and/or the banned officials.
Source: GFA