Sports and Recreation Minister Kofi Adams has accused Tribe Culture Fest CEO Nana Boateng Gyimah of feeding Old Tafo MP Vincent Ekow Assafuah false information about alleged visa fraud involving government officials to divert attention from $611,000 he allegedly collected under an agreement with the National Sports Authority (NSA).
Mr Adams claims the money was collected unlawfully under an arrangement to transport Ghanaians to the 2026 FIFA World Cup and should be refunded.
“He cannot run away with $611,000 of people's money. We must make sure that we get him, and if it is found that right from the word go, he deceived the people, we must take the appropriate criminal actions,” he said.
Speaking on TV3 on October 11, 2026, the minister also addressed controversy over a list of 90 people submitted to the US Embassy for visa processing.
He explained that the embassy had separately requested verification of four individuals presented as NSA staff in a submission the authority made directly on March 18, 2026.
Mr Adams said the NSA Director-General confirmed that the four were not employees, prompting him to respond to the embassy.
“I signed and indicated that they are not known to the ministry and NSA,” he said, stressing that the four individuals were not part of the disputed 90-person list.
He rejected claims that people on the 90-person list had been falsely presented as NSA employees or board members, saying they were described as event coordinators and facilitation personnel.
“Till now, we don't have any such information that anybody was misrepresented on that list, the 90 list. No such information exists anywhere,” he said.
Mr Adams disclosed that about 1,023 visa applications were processed across the relevant categories, but only 441 applicants received visas. He said the ministry facilitated the submission of names, while applicants handled their forms and appointments.
He maintained that visa refusals did not automatically indicate misrepresentation and said his ministry did not decide who received visas. The allegations surrounding the $611,000 and the visa controversy have yet to be independently established.
