According to reports, a Paralympic squad that was meant to represent Ghana in the Fjordkraft Bergen city marathon in April vanished as soon as they got to Norway.
The 11-person contingent was scheduled to compete in the event in Oslo on April 27 after obtaining visas from the Norwegian embassy in Accra.
But nine of them are currently at large, accused of impersonation, according to a letter from Ghana’s national security minister, Albert Kan-Dapaah.
According to the report, Nana Antwi, a team member, was detained on April 26 as she tried to leave Norway for Sweden using a one-way rail ticket.
Their coach, George Gyamfi Gyasi, passed away at Oslo University Hospital on May 17 after collapsing on April 28 according to the letter. It was not revealed what caused the death.
Security alerts have been sent out for the nine members who are fugitives, it continued.
The team did not register for the competition upon arriving in Oslo on April 25, according to the letter that was copied to the foreign minister and the minister of youth and sports.
It says, in part, that “as part of efforts to apprehend and repatriate the team members, the Norwegian Embassy in Accra has issued an alert to other Schengen and Western Diplomatic Missions in Accra, and the European Border Coast Guard Agency.”
Kan-Dapaah also issued a warning, saying that the incident might make it more difficult for the nation’s athletes to obtain visas for contests in the future.
Samson Deen, the head of Ghana’s Paralympic Committee, addressed the issue and claimed that his signature was falsified in order to obtain the visas. He further denied being aware of the eleven-person team.
In an interview, he declared, “The Ghana Paralympic team has not written a letter, sent anybody, or applied for a visa at the Norwegian embassy.”
“No one has been sent by the Ghana Paralympic Committee to the Norwegian embassy or even to obtain a visa in order to travel to Norway. The Ghana Paralympic Committee has never attempted to qualify for the Olympics in Oslo and has no intention of doing so.
“We discovered that the letter was written, and my signature was forged and used to apply for the visa for people who are not athletes after receiving these documents from the ministry of sports,” the statement reads.
“When I contacted Theodore Mawuli Viwotor, the former secretary general of the Ghana Paralympic Football Association, and Ernest Ayisi, the founder of the Ernestay Foundation, I inquired as to how they obtained my signature. They replied that my letter and all the signatures were forged by a man named Adongo, who is based in Europe.”
Ghana will only have one competitor competing in the 2024 Paralympics, which will take place in Paris, France, from August 28 to September 8.
By: Mustapha Hadji Dean
