Court Freezes FA Accounts

The bank accounts of the Ghana Football Association have been frozen, bringing the financial operations of the Ghana Football Association to a temporary halt. This follows a court injunction restraining the football governing body from operating its various bank accounts.

The accounts include the most active one at First Atlantic Bank which has been frozen for several weeks now, rendering void all transactions of the FA.

A source told the Graphic Sports that owing to the injunction a cheque it was expecting from the soccer governing body could not be effected.

Sources revealed that the FA has been battling the legal counsel of Akpaade Lodge, a cozy hotel facility located at Tesano in Accra, over accumulated debts for services rendered to the various national teams.

Between 2002 and 2003, much of the camping of the national teams, notably the Black Satellites and Starlets, was at the hotel which sources at the hotel say, has resulted in a whopping ¢600million debt owed it by the FA.

But several attempts by the management of the hotel to have the FA settle it's indebtedness have proved futile, compelling them to seek legal redress.

Consequently, the court upheld an application for injunction on the accounts of the soccer governing authority.

Following the ruling, baillifs early last month attempted a swoop on some properties of the FA and succeeded in seizing a Nissan Patrol 4x4 vehicle, together with a Toyota bus which turned out to belong to the Ghana League Clubs Association(GHALCA).

Ghalca has since retrieved the bus from the court baillifs. But Mr Fred Crentsil, a member of the emergency committee of the FA, told the Graphic Sports that the FA was initially stunned by the developments because the current administration was not involved in camping arrangements at the said facility.

Indeed the arrangement to use the facility was concluded between the Ministry of Education and Sports and the previous FA administration.

The FA he said has thus filed a defence against the ruling and hearing began last Friday.