Powers refuses to sign fight contract but pledges to fight on May 16

Controversial boxer, Michael Ayittey Powers, yesterday left members of Ghana boxing community, including his manager, Kwame Asomaning, and the Ghana Boxing Authority (GBA) president, Peter Zwennes, stunned when he refused to sign a supplementary contract to confirm May 16 as the date for the much-publicised bout with Braimah Kamoko, popularly known as Bukom Banku.

At a meeting at the Accra Sports Stadium between the GBA board, camps of the two boxers and the media, the 33-year-old insisted he needed more time to study the contract but promised to mount the ring to fight Bukom Banku on May 16 in the once-postponed non-title fight.

The rather surprise turn of events was yet another spanner thrown in the works by Powers, who two weeks ago withdrew from the sanctioned April 18 bout and requested for a postponement of the cruiserweight bout after alleging he had received spiritual guidance from Nigerian evangelist, Temitope Balogun (T.B.) Joshua.

At the meeting, fight promoter, Alex Ntiamoah Boateng, presented a supplementary contract to both boxers but Powers, with guidance from his spokesperson Daniel Akorful, presented the GBA and Box Office Promotions with a letter, appealing for the May 16 bout to be put on hold for personal reasons, stating he was not in the right frame of mind for the bout.

However, the GBA disregarded Power’s plea, insisting that both parties had agreed to the new date and, subsequently, allowed Kamoko to sign the contract.

Mr Zwennes explained that the GBA would not allow itself to be held to ransom by one party.