CAF committee member to challenge FIFA’s planned takeover in court

FIFA’s plan to take over the running of African football is set to face a possible roadblock after an executive committee member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Hasan Bility said he will challenge the decision in court.

Bility, a former Liberian Football Association president, who has been a CAF executive committee member for two years, said he will ask the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport to declare the agreement by which FIFA secretary general Fatma Samoura will be sent to overhaul the African governing body as invalid.

Bility said he will also ask the court to compel CAF to start a forensic audit of its finances, which was previously agreed but was stalled by CAF president Ahmad Ahmad.

The former Liberian Football Association president in a statement said Ahmad must resign and the proposed FIFA takeover be cancelled.

“Logically, and in a sane world, the acquiescence by the CAF leadership that they have been unable to manage their own affairs ought to have been followed by quick resignation of its top leaders,” Bility said.

Bility noted that the proposed takeover by FIFA is “In an attempt to salvage CAF from imminent implosion and irreversible reputational damage, FIFA proposed a poorly conceptualised and worse executed agreement.”

He alleged that “the agreement as currently structured has the sole purpose of shielding and cleansing CAF President Ahmad from the crimes he has committed – financial impropriety, sexual harassment and nepotism.”

CAF leadership is currently facing corruption allegations. Ahmad has however denied the allegations.

Ahmad was reported in March to FIFA’s ethics committee for alleged corruption and harassment by CAF general secretary Amr Fahmy, who was later fired.

The CAF President was detained in June by French police in Paris where he was questioned over a sportswear deal between CAF and a French company in where the African body is alleged to have paid exorbitant prices for equipment much cheaper from the manufacturers.

The ongoing crisis also reportedly led to the non-renewal of the term of office of Nigeria’s football governing body president, Amaju Pinnick, CAF as first Vice President.

The decision was taken during the body’s Executive Committee meeting in Cairo, a day before the final of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

His removal was also a day after CAF’s executive committee agreed to allow FIFA Secretary-General to take charge of the administration of the confederation for a period of six months.

The agreement confirmed the appointment of FIFA Secretary General Fatma Samoura as a General Delegate for Africa, which is in furtherance of recent developments regarding governance structures within the African body.