Two renowned lawyers have described as strange a decision by the World Commission to compel GFA boss, Kwasi Nyantakyi, to take a second oath at the Commission's hearing Wednesday.
"Too much over too little" was Egbert Faible's description of Justice Senyo Dzamefe's insistence that Kwesi Nyantakyi takes a second oath and end with 'so help me Allah', although the GFA President was administered an oath when he appeared before the Commission on Tuesday.
Kwasi Nyantakyi was forced to take a second oath after the Commission set up to investigate Ghana's poor showing at the Brazil World Cup thought public knowledge of Mr Nyantakyi's religion contravened his choice of Qur'an for the oath yesterday.
Although Nyantakyi insisted that he was a Muslim, Chairman of the Commission said irrespective of that claim the GFA boss concluded his oath-taking wrongly.
The Commission insisted that even if Mr Nyantakyi is a Muslim, he ended this first oath with 'so help me God' instead of 'so help me Allah', which is the normal practice.
Justice Dzamefe then announced he was using his power of veto to compel the GFA boss to take another oath that should end with 'so help me Allah'.
Not convinced by the legal necessity of the Commssion's directive, counsel for the GFA, Thaddeus Sory, raised an objection on grounds that Mr Nyantakyi's first oath had been admitted but the Commission stood its ground.
Speaking on Top Story on Joy FM Wednesday, Egbert Faible said the law states clearly that "a person who has being taken the oath of allegiance or the judicial oath shall not be required again to take that oath on appointment to any other office or on any other occasion".
He went on to read the specific format of oaths as written in the Oaths Act: "I --[name of witness] -- do hereby swear by the Almighty God that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth."
According to him the law does not expressly state that persons taking an oath should end with 'so help me God' or 'so help me Allah' irrespective of the person's religious affiliation.
Ace Ankomah wrote on Facebook page that the events at the Commission were new to him.
He said: "I have never known that a witness who has sworn an oath at a previous sitting can be required to swear again at the adjourned sitting. You are simply "reminded of your former oath." If the court or judicial or quasi-judicial body that administered the oath, had a problem with the choice by the witness of a holy object, that matter should have been resolved before he first swore the oath. But I find no legal provision, authority or known practice/procedure that necessitates the swearing of a second oath at a subsequent, adjourned sitting."
Mr Nyantakyi himself felt he was being heckled. According to him the Commission was being biased.
Spokesperson for the Commission, Thomas Boakye Agyeman, said despite what looks like a breach of legal procedure, what the Commission sought to do was put things right.
He also debunked assertions by Mr Nyantakyi that the Commission had not been fair to him.
Mr Agyeman insisted the fact that Mr Nyantakyi retracted his words was proof that the GFA boss had no issues with the Commission.
Listen to the entire programmed on attached audio:
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