Governing Bodies
Ex-Fifa boss Blatter ‘happy’ after meeting Swiss prosecutor in payment probe
Former world football chief Sepp Blatter on Monday (Aug 9) met a Swiss prosecutor investigating suspected fraud surrounding a Fifa payment to Michel Platini, as the long-running probe inches towards a conclusion.
The 85-year-old former Fifa president is being investigated over a two million Swiss franc (S$3.25 million) payment in 2011 to Platini, who was then in charge of European football’s governing body Uefa.
In a statement ahead of the hearing, Blatter said he was going into the session with optimism.
After the interview at the federal prosecutor’s office in Zurich, the city where the global football governing body has its headquarters, Blatter said he would return on Tuesday to resume the final hearing in the investigation.
“It is a normal audience. It’s the first part. The second part will be tomorrow,” he told journalists waiting outside.
“It was in a good spirit.”
Blatter, who was accompanied by his lawyer Lorenzo Erni, said he would spend the rest of the day resting and working. He smiled and waved as he was driven away.
His spokesman Thomas Renggli told AFP that Fifa had a lawyer present at Monday’s meeting.
“It’s over for today, but it will continue tomorrow. Mr Blatter is happy. He said it has gone well so far,” Renggli said. “He hopes the hearing ends tomorrow.”
The hearing with a federal prosecutor from the Office of the Attorney-General (OAG) of Switzerland was postponed to this week due to the retired Swiss football administrator’s health.
He spent two months in hospital in December and January after undergoing heart surgery, and in March was convalescing in a clinic.
Due to Blatter’s condition, he was only meant to spend around 90 minutes with the prosecutor on Monday. But he spent more than two and a half hours inside and said he would return on Tuesday.
‘Fraud, breach of trust’
Joseph “Sepp” Blatter joined Fifa in 1975, became its general secretary in 1981 and president in 1998.
He was forced to stand down in 2015 and was originally banned by Fifa for eight years, later reduced to six, over ethics breaches when he authorised what prosecutors termed a “disloyal payment” to Platini – in other words, one made in his own interests rather than Fifa’s.
Blatter and Platini, 66, found themselves at the centre of a Swiss federal investigation.
“Specifically, the criminal proceedings against Joseph Blatter are now being conducted on suspicion of fraud, breach of trust and unfaithful business management,” the OAG said in a statement ahead of Monday’s hearing.
“The criminal proceedings against Michel Platini are being conducted on suspicion of fraud, participation in breach of trust, participation in unfaithful management and false documents.”
Under the Code of Criminal Procedure, in lengthy and complex proceedings, suspects “are questioned one last time before the investigation is concluded, and asked to comment on the results of the investigation”, the OAG added.
“Conducting final interviews does not allow any conclusions to be drawn about the outcome of criminal proceedings (discontinuation, penalty order or indictment).”
‘Late payment of wages’
While Blatter’s final hearings with the prosecutor were postponed to August, Platini’s took place in March.
Blatter insisted that the payment to former France and Juventus attacking midfielder Platini, considered among world football’s greatest players, was above board.
“It was based on an oral contract that regulated Platini’s advisory activities for Fifa between 1998 and 2002,” he said.
“The process was correctly declared as a late payment of wages.”
The OAG said the presumption of innocence applied to all parties in the proceedings and it could not put a time frame on concluding the investigation.
–AFP
The president of the Confédération of African Football, Dr. Patrice Motsepe, has announced five new CAF Vice Presidents. They are:
- CAF First Vice President: Mr Fouzi Lekjaa (Morocco)
- CAF Second Vice President: Mr Kurt Okraku (Ghana)
- CAF Third Vice President: Mr Pierre-Alain Mounguengui (Gabon)
- CAF Fourth Vice President: Ms Bestine Kazadi Ditabala (Democratic Republic of Congo)
- CAF Fifth Vice President: Mr Feizal Sidat (Mozambique)
In addition, the CAF President has co-opted Yacine Idriss Diallo, President of Fédération Ivoirienne de football, into the CAF Executive Committee.
The CAF Executive Committee also approved the names to fill vacant positions on several CAF Committees.
Organising Committee for the African Nations Championship (CHAN)
- President: Pierre-Alain Mounguengui (Gabon)
CAF Technical and Development Committee
- President: Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon)
- Vice President: Malouche Belhassen (Tunisia)
CAF Medical Committee:
- President: Dr. Mohammed Bouya (Mauritania)
- Vice President: Dr. Thulani Ngwenya (South Africa)
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Governing Bodies
Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council
Laurels on the courts and now glory in the boardroom sums up the mark that badminton is making in Nigeria.
The President, Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), Francis Orbih, has been elected as a council member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
The election took place during the BWF Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Xiamen, China.
Orbih emerged victorious over top contenders from other African countries.
He will join Cameroon’s Odette Assembe Engoulou on the council, while Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe) and Hadia ElSaid (Egypt) missed out.
An elated Orbih expressed his gratitude to fellow badminton presidents across the globe for their trust and support.
He said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust placed in me by my peers across the badminton world.
“I look forward to quality representation, driving development initiatives, and strengthening badminton’s global reach over the next four years.”
Orbih also acknowledged the support of the Federal Government of Nigeria, particularly the National Sports Commission (NSC), which he said played a significant role in his successful bid.
“The Chairman and the Director General of the NSC monitored the entire process. I’m grateful for their involvement and confident Nigeria will benefit from this,” he stated.
He further appreciated the BFN board members and the Nigerian badminton community for their prayers and continued belief in his leadership.
“From the day I declared my intentions, the board members of BFN have been supportive, and I promise not to disappoint them,” Orbih concluded.
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A former member of the FIFA Council, Mamoutou Toure, has been released from jail in Mali after almost two years in detention for alleged corruption, Malian media reports said on Wednesday.
Toure, president of the Malian Football Federation since 2019, was released after 622 days in prison on Tuesday.
He served on the FIFA Council, world football’s all-powerful decision-making body, for four years until last month when he lost his seat after failing to contest new elections.
The 67-year-old was arrested in August 2023 on allegations of embezzling $28 million of public funds but was granted a provisional release order by the Malian courts, reports said.
He was accused of misconduct during his time as the National Assembly’s financial and administrative director from 2013-2019.
Toure denied all charges and, during his time in jail, was last August re-elected as Malian Football Federation president for a second consecutive term, with his supporters claiming he was a victim of a conspiracy fuelled by detractors.
While in jail, he received a letter of support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, as of last month, Toure is no longer a member of the FIFA Council or the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee.
-Reuters
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