Some 54 members who signed a resolution requesting the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to convene an extraordinary Congress to review parts of the statutes of the football association say they will proceed to the Congress.
Despite the GFA’s claims that their resolution does not meet the requirement of the association statutes, especially article 33(2) which demands that only more than 50 per cent of members can call for an extraordinary Congress, they insist it will be convened.
JoySports have sighted the convocation for Congress slated for December 21, 2021, at the Baba Yara stadium.
The convocation contains the amendments members requested of the FA in the 2020 Congress, which the FA and FIFA did not agree with.
It says, an expansion of Congress size to 148 members, with 36 delegates for premier league clubs, 48 for division one league clubs, 20 delegates for women’s league clubs and three delegates for each regional football association and many others.
They also want an expansion to the current Executive Council from 12 to 20 members.
The petitioners described as ‘disrespect’ the decision of the FA to respond to their resolution submitted on November 18, on December 10, with a wrong date, though the General Secretary, Prosper Harrison Addo, in an email to members at 8:35 PM, sighted by JoySports corrected the date from September 10, 2021, to December 10, 2021.
“We have received your letter dated 10th September 2021 that miraculously purports to respond to our petition dated 18th November 2021,” the petitioners wrote.
“Even though your letter ought to have been treated with contempt because of the date and the time it was sent, showing utmost disrespect towards the Petitioners, we would like to draw your attention to several issues.
“It’s not for you to tell the Petitioners that some clubs have withdrawn their petition. With the greatest of respect, you have not collected any signatures from any club.
“The Petitioners didn’t procure the signatures forcefully. If any person for any reason wants to withdraw his or her signature, the person knows where his signature was sent. The best thing is to call the person he sent his signature to.
The petitioners, whom the GFA say are propagating falsehood and misinforming others, wants evidence produced for the claims that some clubs withdrew their signatures as they did not append their signatures under duress.
“As Petitioners, we have not received any such letters of intent to withdraw any signatures.
“No one signed the petition under duress. If the FA so wishes, the Petitioners can show evidence of how we procured the signatures of each of the clubs, especially, those purported to have withdrawn.
“We, respectfully, draw your attention to your ruling involving Phar Rangers and how it was stated categorically that withdrawal of earlier communications is not tolerated.”
“On the issue of withdrawal, you failed to provide any evidence of clubs writing to you to withdraw. Some of the clubs you listed in your letter as having withdrawn are denied. So, as you can see, it’s your words against theirs,” the letter noted.
“On the issue of people who signed but are not signatories to clubs per your records, you left us to go on a guessing expedition. Our facts indicate otherwise. We will be grateful if you could list the names of such people so we can properly respond.”
The members concluded that they will proceed to congress, and shall be forced to head to the Court of Arbitration for Sport if FIFA or the GFA attempts to resist their demands.
Per article 33(3) of the GFA statutes, members can proceed to an extraordinary congress should the football governing body fail to honour the request within 14 days.
“We shall go ahead to convene the extraordinary Congress, get honourable Congress members to approve the amendment proposals. After that, if FIFA thinks it can stop any member association from amending its statutes to suit its aspirations, CAS will be brought in to adjudicate. We think you should leave that for FIFA and your members.”
The GFA and petitioners have been at loggerheads since August 2020.