Former President of the GFA, Kwesi Nyantakyi(L) and President of the GFA Kurt Okraku (R)
The 2019 Ghana Football Association (GFA) presidential election was a fiercely contested race, with George Afriyie and Kurt Okraku emerging as the top contenders.
However, a shocking twist has been revealed, with allegations that a single phone call from former GFA President Kwesi Nyantakyi swayed the election in Okraku’s favour.
Okraku won the GFA presidential election in 2019 after three rounds of voting. In the first round, Okraku secured 44 votes, narrowly edging out George Afriyie, who received 40 votes.
In the second round, Okraku led with 59 votes but fell just short of the required majority of 50% +1, forcing a third round. After Afriyie withdrew, Okraku won the final round unchallenged with 93 votes.
Despite conceding defeat, Afriyie has since disclosed what he believes was the decisive factor in his loss, blaming Nyantakyi for influencing the outcome.
Speaking in an interview with Sporty FM, Afriyie claimed he was in a strong position to win until Nyantakyi’s last-minute intervention changed the course of the election.
“Did you hear what Mr. Kwesi Nyantakyi said recently? He revealed that on the night before the elections, someone called him and told him he must help Kurt. He said that, at the time, Kurt had not spoken to him, but immediately after that call ended, Kurt reached out to him,” Afriyie stated.
“Nyantakyi then rushed to his house and summoned 60 delegates, instructing them to vote for Kurt. Some of them even admitted that before receiving his call, they had planned to vote for another candidate. He influenced 60 out of 123 delegates. This is a man who had been banned from football,” he recalled.
Afriyie further suggested that, despite the official results, he still feels he won the election, citing Nyantakyi’s influence in Ghanaian football as a crucial factor in the outcome.
“I won the elections, at least that’s how I see it. If a night before such a crucial election, Mr. Nyantakyi, who we all know played a major role in Ghanaian football, intervened despite being banned, then his influence cannot be ignored. That last-minute lobbying happened, and I still managed to get 40 votes while Kurt got 44. You cannot discount Nyantakyi’s 13 years in football,” he added.
Okraku’s tenure, however, has been marred by setbacks, including Ghana’s back-to-back group-stage exits at AFCON 2021 and 2023, as well as the Black Stars’ failure to qualify for AFCON 2025.
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