Ghana-Holland friendly match saga: ‘No payment by Dutch Govt’

The president of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kwesi Nyantakyi, has vehemently denied the claim by the Dzamefe Commission’s report that the Ghana-Holland friendly was sponsored by the Dutch government and indicated the FA’s readiness to contest the mattter in court, among other issues.

According to the report, the Dutch government paid for all the expenses of the pre-World Cup friendly with Holland in Rotterdam on May 31.

However, Nyantakyi has debunked that assertion on the basis of a message sent to the GFA by the Royal Netherlands Football Association (KNVB).

In a bid to set the records straight, the GFA president wrote to his Dutch counterpart, Michael van Praag, for clarification as to whether the Dutch government actually sponsored the match as posited by the commission.

‘Please can you provide a little clarification on this issue that has become the subject of commentary in the report of a Commission of Inquiry in Ghana.

“According to the report the Holland v Ghana game on May 31, 2014 was financed by the Dutch Government. Can you please confirm that? In fact we had no contact whatsoever with any Government official from Holland regarding this match,” Nyantakyi stated.

In response, Bianca Bos, Assistant to the President and the General Secretary of the Dutch FA, flatly denied the involvement of the Dutch government in the said match.

“On behalf of our President and General Secretary I would like to inform you that the Dutch government did not finance the match between Holland v Ghana on the 31st of May.

 “The Dutch government only financed the official kick-off of the Football for Water project around the Holland vs Ghana match, a Water & Sanitation behaviour change programme that runs for instance in Ghana with UNICEF and is executed by PFAG in Ghana as partner of KNVB,” the letter stressed.

The issue of double payment for international friendlies became topical during the commission’s sittings after the Acting CEO of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) testified that Black Stars friendlies were sponsored by his outfit as the team’s headline sponsor.

That claim was corroborated by Nyantakyi when he appeared before the commission.