Dreams up in smoke! but swear to challenge decision
Embattled Dreams FC have sworn to challenge the Appeals Committee decision to demote it to Division One for featuring an unqualified player against Tema Youth in a second tier league match during the 2014/2015 league season.
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Dreams FC contend that the Appeals Committee which sat on the case did not have the locus to do so since it was a parallel body to the existing GFA Appeals Committee as per the FA’s own regulations.
The club further argued that once the Appeals Committee which heard the case earlier had not yet been dissolved, it was illegal for another committee to be constituted to sit on the case as directed by the Court of Appeal for Sport (CAS).
Contesting the ruling in an interview with the Graphic Sports yesterday, counsel for Dreams FC, Emmanuel Larbi Amoah (aka Barbados), said they were only waiting for the ruling to decide their next line of action.
A distraught Mr Amoah said the manner in which the committee went about the hearing without involving Dreams FC clearly indicated that the case had already been predetermined.
“I must tell you for sure that they had already written the ruling because the committee met Tema Youth twice before serving us a letter to make our defence,” he alleged.
According to him it was Dreams FC which eventually wrote to the committee to remind them that they had not been served before they were invited for hearing.
Mr Amoah said when Dreams FC finally came before the committee last Wednesday after a preliminary appearance on Tuesday, it raised an objection about the composition of the new Appeals Committee for being a parallel body to the existing Appeals Committee.
He said the club had earlier filed a preliminary objection to dismiss the Tema Youth case because it was not filed on the appropriate form, while failing to pay the filing fees as well.
However, the seven-member committee, chaired by Cosmas Anpengnuo, convinced of having the jurisdiction to determine the review application as recommended by CAS, went ahead to rule on the case the same day.
In arriving at its decision, the committee said the player at the centre of the controversy, Cudjoe Mensah, was unqualified to play in the 24th week GN Bank Division One League match between Tema Youth Football Club and Dreams Football Club at Kweiman on July 25, 2015.
“That the representation of the player as Cudjoe Mensah for registration by the GFA when the player had earlier registered as Daniel Gozar is irregular and renders his registration as Cudjoe Mensah void. That Dreams FC is liable for the irregular registration of Cudjoe Mensah, Dreams FC is hereby declared loser of the match,” it added.
The ruling made Tema Youth three points and three goals richer, and Dreams FC suffer a three-point deduction from its accumulated points in accordance with the GFA General Regulations.
“That by reason of our decision stated at paragraphs 5, 6 and, 7, the winner of the GN BANK Division One League Zone 3 competition shall replace Dreams FC in the Premier League for the 201612017 Premier League season.”
In addition, Dreams FC were fined GH¢2,500, 50 per cent of which shall be paid to Tema Youth in accordance with Article 34(5)(a) of the GFA General Regulation, while Ibrahim Dossey Adam who signed the release letter of Cudjoe Mensah on behalf of Dreams FC had been banned from holding any GFA office or that of any club affiliated to the GFA for five years with effect from November 30, 2015.
Also banned for five years is Mumuni Malik of Botwey Youth, who signed the release letter of Cudjoe Mensah.
Meanwhile, the founder of Tema Youth, Wilfred Kwaku Osei (Palmer), told the Graphic Sports yesterday that he was happy that justice had finally been served to set the records straight in the supreme interest of Ghana football.
The fulfilled Palmer, however, wondered why Dreams FC decided to dwell on technicalities instead of addressing the substantive case.
According to him when he risked a fortune to pursue the matter at CAS he knew too well that he had a good case and was, therefore, not surprised about the latest ruling by the Appeals Committee.
He explained that CAS specifically instructed the GFA to reconstitute another Appeals Committee to review the November 3 decision which was exactly what had been done.
He stated that while Amidaus Professionals transferred the player to Dreams FC, the latter did not serve the GFA notice on the change of name, making the player unqualified to play under a new name.
He stressed that the player would not have been ajudged to be unqualified had he even been on the bench for Dreams in the said match. But in this case he featured for Dreams FC in the match.
Palmer, who is also a member of the GFA Executive Committee, emphasised that the player was actually released to Dreams FC by Amidaus Professionals and not Botwey Youth as the records indicated since Botwey Youth were an amateur club.
