Ghana’s National Paralympic Committee (NPC) has suspended two officials indefinitely in connection with a visa fraud scandal involving purported para-athletes travelling to Norway.
The suspensions were levied against Theodore Mawuli Viwotor, former General Secretary of the Ghana Amputee Football Association, and Yaw Ayisi, founder of the Ernestay Foundation. They were found complicit in forging documents to secure visas for individuals who failed to register for a competition in Norway last April.
Reports revealed that 11 para-athletes and officials who had travelled to Norway did not participate in the event as expected. Norwegian authorities subsequently alerted Schengen states and Western diplomatic missions, initiating efforts to repatriate the individuals involved.
The scandal further escalated with the death of the team’s coach, George Gyamfi Gyasi, on 17 May 2024, during his hospitalization at Oslo University Hospital.
In response to the findings, Albert Kan-Dapah, Minister of National Security, highlighted the severity of the situation, noting the falsification of official documents and unauthorized actions by the suspended officials.
The NPC, led by Samson Deen, plans to issue a comprehensive statement following its investigation into the incident. The statement aims to address the broader implications and ensure transparency moving forward.
