Referees Collect Bribes In Dollars?

The Ethics Committee of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) is contemplating dragging the CEO of Tema Youth, Wilfred Osei Kwaku Palmer, to appear before it for some disparaging allegation he made that a section of Ghanaian referees received between $5,000 and GHc8,000 bribes to decide some matches of the just-ended Glo Premier League.

A source at the committee told graphic.com.gh that the allegation was serious and Mr Palmer would have to substantiate it with concrete evidence.

The Tema Youth boss said Tuesday on Accra-based radio station, Asempa FM, that the bribery canker had worsened to the extent that referees now demanded dollars to decide matches in favour of the highest bidder.

Palmer, as he is affectionately called in football circles, later told graphic.com.gh, he would mention names if pushed against the wall.

“This is an open secret, and some of the referees have confirmed it to me secretly,” said Mr Palmer, who is also an executive committee member of the FA.

His outburst stemmed from the fact that the practice only favoured clubs with huge financial muscles and it frustrated the efforts of smaller sides.

He said the practice, if not checked, could eventually kill the game and might not produce credible champions in future.

Mr Palmer said there should be a way of checking the canker scientifically ahead of matches, suggesting, for instance, the tapping of suspects’ phones, among other means, to track the perpetrators.

The outspoken Tema youth boss, whose constant criticism of the FA, many believe, contributed to his team’s relegation to division one two seasons ago, also commented on a wide range of issues including the re-constitution of the FA’s Referees Review Committee.

He suggested that the Review Committee should be made up of experts, like retired referees and technical men, rather than club officials.

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