My daughter asked if I was a thief — Kwesi Nyantakyi on ‘Number 12’ exposé

• Posted on January 6, 2026January 6, 2026
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

Former Ghana Football Association (GFA) president Kwesi Nyantakyi has described the personal and professional impact of investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw’s exposé on his life as “irreparable,” while urging the journalist to leave him out of his conscience.

Speaking on the AM Show, Nyantakyi reflected on the fallout from the 2018 “Number 12” undercover investigation, which exposed widespread corruption in Ghanaian football and led to his lifetime ban from football administration by the GFA Ethics Committee.

“The damage is irreparable, but I don’t have anything against him. He should relax. If his conscience is battling with him, it’s between him and God,” Nyantakyi said.

The former football chief also revealed the emotional strain the exposé placed on his family, recounting an incident involving his nine-year-old daughter.

“My daughter was in GIS at that time, and she asked me, ‘Daddy, is it true that you are a thief?’ I said, how are you to know from this funny question? She said she heard it on the radio. Imagine a judgment by your own daughter that you heard you are a thief,” Nyantakyi told the show.

He added that the exposé damaged his reputation and disrupted opportunities in both professional and personal spheres. 

“The condescending posture of some people towards you…They see you as a condemned criminal. The aura of respectability around you is broken. It was very damning,” he noted.

Nyantakyi also expressed gratitude to friends who supported him through the personal turmoil following the scandal, highlighting the significant social and psychological consequences of the public revelations.

The “Number 12” investigation, which aired in 2018, shook Ghanaian football to its core, exposing officials soliciting bribes and influencing refereeing decisions, leading to sweeping reforms in the GFA and the banning of several officials.