VIDEO: 'My husband does not have money' - Mrs Nyantakyi
Mrs Christine-Marie Nyantakyi, the first wife of former Ghana Football Association (GFA) President Kwesi Nyantakyi has suggested that her husband may not be able to pay the 500,000 Swiss Francs fine imposed on him as part of his lifetime ban from all football activities by FIFA.
Mr Nyantakyi was handed a lifetime ban from all football activities by the independent Ethics Committee of FIFA on Tuesday, October 30.
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He was found guilty of having violated Article 19 (conflict of interest), Article 21 (Bribery and corruption) and Article 22 (Commission) of the FIFA Code of Ethics, 2012 edition and is expected to settle a 500,000 Swiss Francs (over GH₡2.4million) fine.
However, speaking on Good Evening Ghana on Tuesday (November 6, 2018), Mrs Nyantakyi said her spouse is not as wealthy as perceived by most Ghanaians.
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"You see, contrary to what people think, my husband does not have money," Mrs Nyantakyi, the wife of the longest-serving GFA President said.
Admitting that people will find her statement difficult to believe, she added that there are some assets that rich people own that her husband does not possess.
Mrs Christine-Marie Nyantakyi and her husband Kwesi Nyantakyi
"You see, there are certain things that if somebody has money you can judge. Your residence, where the person lives, the kind of house he lives, the kind of car he drives.
"People should take time and come and see where we live, if my husband has that kind of money, we wouldn't be living there. My husband has been a lawyer for more than 25 years... So, that house that Kwesi has, it's his personal money that he used to build it".
On how the couple and their kids will survive now that her husband is unemployed, Mrs Nyantakyi said: “God will provide”.
Watch the video below;
According to Article 15 (4) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code 2017 edition, the GFA may be jointly liable for Mr Nyantakyi's fine even though he has resigned his role as the head of Ghana football.
Some analysts have suggested that FIFA would deduct the fine from the benefits due Nyantakyi after he served as a FIFA Council member, member of the FIFA Associations Committee, First Vice President of CAF and President of Zone B of the West African Football Union (WAFU).
He relinquished those roles in June this year following the premiere of an undercover investigation which captured him accepting a "cash gift" in an undercover documentary titled Number12.
In January this year, the New York Times reported that the 37-members of the FIFA council were paid $
Nyantakyi was first elected to the FIFA Council in September 2016. He was re-elected for a second term in March 2017 for a four-year term which was truncated by the bribery scandal.
Mr Nyantakyi has denied any wrongdoing and signalled his intent to appeal the verdict at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.