Monrovia, Liberia – Cassell Anthony Kuoh’s eligibility to run for president in April 2026 alleged appears to have been compromised by individuals within the Liberia Football Association (LFA), under the direction of President Mustapha Raji.
Among those running against Raji for a third term is Kuoh, a former LFA Vice President under Musa Hassan Bility’s administration.
Since his release from prison in June 2023, the businessman—who is also the Chief Executive Officer of FC Kallon-Liberia, which will soon become FC Fassell—has been winning over the Liberian football community with his club-to-club campaign plan.
The FC Fassell bank-roller would be eliminated from the race because of his prior record, according to LFA insiders.
Recall that, in an apparent jab at Kuoh, Raji stated during the LFA’s 28th ordinary congress in April that the organization will not serve as a place for people to launder their filthy money.
“We will not permit anyone to wash their filthy money inside the Liberia Football Association. Money laundering, commonly referred to as “dirty money washing,” is the illegal practice of transforming funds earned from unlawful operations like drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement, or gambling into a legitimate source while masking its true source, according to Raji.
Raji acknowledged turning down Kuoh’s offer of US$5,000, which was intended to inspire the women’s under-17 squad as they got ready to play Nigeria at the Samuel Kanyon Doe sports center in Paynesville on June 9.
Raji expressed his opinion to Smile FM in Zwedru, Grand Gedeh County, that no one in Grand Gedeh will extend their hand to accept money from a “ritualistic person.”
He stated that the LFA needs to confirm the funding source before taking any donations, especially from people with a criminal history like Kuoh.
After being found guilty of wire fraud by a US court, Kuoh was sentenced to seven years in jail.
He runs the New Energy Electric Vehicle (NEEV-Liberia), where he creates jobs for many Liberians, and has publicly acknowledged his history. He served his prison term and returned to Liberia regretful of his actions.
Kuoh is anticipated to be one of the contenders for the presidency seat who would testify before the LFA electoral committee.
Kuoh, who teamed up with Chris Geeplay Weah, another presidential contender, to address a press conference on June 14, 2024, stated Raji couldn’t prevent him from running.
“No matter what, I’m going to run for office since the law doesn’t prevent me from doing so. Speaking of fraud, Mustapha is a Nigerian, and you are aware of the origins of the 419 scheme. Mustapha claims he received funding for the trips of our national teams from a Fula businessman. This Fula man’s financial source is unknown to us. We are unaware of the exact amount we owe the hotel in Morocco. The LFA received $1,000 USD from Benoni Urey, a businessman. They didn’t inquire as to where he got his money. A politician also gave them another donation, but this time they didn’t question where the money came from. Mustapha is terrified of me because he knows me.” During my tenure as Vice President, he wasn’t even dreaming of being a leader in the LFA. Simply said, I think this is immature and childish. Since when has the LFA been looking into the donors’ origins?”
All efforts to get a response from Raji about the allegation that he is behind the plot to stop Kuoh from contesting didn’t materialize as he refused to answer our calls or respond to direct and WhatsApp messages sent to him.
Reported by: Thomas Kojo Roulhac
Contact: +231888979019
