January 18 – A Ghanaian undercover journalist has been shot dead following an exposé about a massive corruption scandal in African football.Reports said Ahmed Divela Hussein-Suale was killed by unidentified assailants on motorbikes as he drove home in Accra after a Ghanaian politician called for retribution against him.
He was shot twice in the chest and once in the neck in the Accra suburb of Madina on Wednesday night.
Hussein-Suale was a leading member of Tiger Eye Private Investigations, set up by award-winning Ghanaian journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas whose BBC documentary about widespread corruption in African football led to the downfall of Kwesi Nyantakyi, former Ghana Football Association President, CAF Vice President and FIFA Executive Council member. Nyantakyi was filmed on tape allegedly taking a cash gift of $65,000 and later banned for life by Fifa.
The bribery revelations formed part of a two-year undercover investigation into football corruption in Africa and revealed footage of over 100 referees and officials allegedly taking cash before games. After the BBC broadcast, which prompted Ghana to dissolve its football association, Ghanaian MP Kennedy Agyapong circulated photos of Hussein-Suale, also appearing on television offering supporters money to “break his ears” and “beat him”
In a defiant social media post Anas said he would not be silenced after the murder of his colleague. Anas said he was “deeply saddened” by the killing but vowed to continue to report on corruption. “Come what may, we will never stop,” he said.
In a statement Tiger Eye PI added: “We … are terribly devastated by this dastardly act, but remain unshaken in our resolve to make … corruption a high-risk activity in this country,”.
Ghanaian President Afuko-Addo also condemned the killing saying on Twitter: “I expect the police to bring to book, as soon as possible, the perpetrators of this heinous crime.”
The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said authorities in Ghana should immediately investigate the killing of Hussein-Suale and ensure that threats against the media are taken seriously.
“Those responsible … should be swiftly brought to justice. Ghana’s government must prove itself willing to hold accountable those who attack the press,” CPJ Africa Programme Coordinator Angela Quintal was quoted as saying. “This shooting is a grave signal that journalists cannot work safely to keep the public informed or hold power to account in Ghana.”
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