Africa Sports

Sports Minister addresses ‘fake’ Paralympic team Norway visa scandal

The Minister of Youth and Sports, Mustapha Ussif, has clarified that his institute was not involved in securing visas for the group that posed as Ghana’s Paralympics team for a supposed marathon event in Oslo, Norway.

He explained that the regular practice involves the association alerting the Sports Ministry through the National Sports Authority about an upcoming event, which was not the case regarding the ‘Paralympic team.’

He emphasised that his sector was not informed about the marathon event and that the team that embarked on the trip did not go in the name of Ghana.

“In this Norway case, there was no request for either the National Sports Authority or the Youth and Sports. We were not aware of any event, and the team that went did not represent Ghana as it has been reported,” he said in a press briefing on Wednesday, July 24, 2024.

The minister highlighted the visa application procedure for athletes, indicating that the Sports sector seeks visas for athletes by liaising with Foreign Affairs and that the sector does not send letters to embassies on their own.

“Normally, we don’t issue letters to the embassies; we write to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for them to work on our behalf. For the record, this concocted Paralympic team did not represent our country.”

The scandal came to light following a statement released by the National Security revealing that an 11-member Paralympic team absconded after arriving in Norway.

The letter mentioned that one of the team members was arrested by Norwegian security officials while on his way to Sweden from Norway, whereas another met his untimely death after collapsing, leaving nine members on the run.

 

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

Ogyem Solomon

Solomon Ogyem – Media Entrepreneur | Journalist | Brand Ambassador Solomon Ogyem is a dynamic Ghanaian journalist and media entrepreneur currently based in South Africa. With a solid foundation in journalism, Solomon is a graduate of the OTEC School of Journalism and Communication Studies in Ghana and Oxbridge Academy in South Africa. He began his career as a reporter at OTEC 102.9 MHz in Kumasi, where he honed his skills in news reporting, community storytelling, and radio broadcasting. His passion for storytelling and dedication to the media industry led him to establish Press MltiMedia Company in South Africa—a growing platform committed to authentic African narratives and multimedia journalism. Solomon is the founder and owner of Thepressradio.com, a news portal focused on delivering credible, timely, and engaging stories across Ghana and Africa. He also owns Press Global Tickets, a service-driven venture in the travel and logistics space, providing reliable ticketing services. He previously owned two notable websites—Ghanaweb.mobi and ShowbizAfrica.net—both of which contributed to entertainment and socio-political discussions within Ghana’s digital space. With a diverse background in media, digital journalism, and business, Solomon Ogyem is dedicated to telling impactful African stories, empowering youth through media, and building cross-continental media partnerships.

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