Algeria’s Kheireddine Zetchi has become the third football governing body’s fourth official to be arrested this year.

According to Algerian media, the 59-year-old businessman who was a former president of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) is accused, along with others, of corruption through “the conclusion of contracts in violation of the law for the granting of undue advantages to others and obtaining unjustified privileges,” “willful misappropriation of public funds,” and “abuse of function.”

Earlier, the presidents of the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ), Andrew Kamanga and that of the South Africa Football Association (SAFA), Danny Jordaan were arrested this year over financial deals.

In the Algerian episode, Kheireddine Zetchi who succeeded Mohamed Raouraoua at the head of the FAF, presided over Algerian football from 2017 to 2021. He was also instrumental in the creation of the Paradou Football Training Centre.

According to various sources, corruption is rampant in Algerian football, as the management under Zetchi’s predecessors was marred by malfeasance and corruption.

But other sources claimed that the legal against Kheireddine Zetchi is revenge by the military regime in Algeria, which has not forgiven the former FAF president for his vote during the 43rd General Assembly of the Confederation of African Football Confederation (CAF), in favour of amending Article 4 of the statutes of the pan-African body.

BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

The President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Ibrahim Musa Gusau has been elected as the 1^st Vice President of the West African Football Union (WAFU) B zone.

He thus becomes the fifth Nigerian to hold a top position in the West African subregional football body.

Others before him include the founding president, Joseph Kwamina Tandoh who at the time was a vice chairman of the then Nigeria Football Association (NFA).

Others are Jonathan Boytie Ogufere, president from 1988 to 1994; Abdulmumini Aminu (1999 to 2002) and Amos Adamu (2008 to 2010) under whose tenure, the hitherto 16-nation body was divided into two – WAFU A and WAFU B.

Gusau’s election took place this Friday in Niamey, Niger Republic on the sidelines of the CAF African Schools Football Championship (WAFU B qualifying tournament.

The WAFU B zone is now made up of seven countries after CAF split what was the biggest subregional football body, not just in Africa, but also globally.

The WAFU Zone B now comprise Nigeria, Togo, Benin Republic, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Niger Republic and Cote d’Ivoire.

 The original 16-nation body was founded in Abidjan on 7 September 1975. But 36 years later, life was snuffed out of the biggest subregional football body when CAF on 16 May 2011 split it into two along the zonal divisions of the Supreme Council for Sports in Africa (SCSA).

However, Sports Village Square recalls that WAFU had existed with another name before the foundation date of 7 September 1975. In March 1959, the West African Football Federation (WAFF) was founded, and it comprised the 16 nations that later became WAFU 15 years later.

Delegates from seven countries met in Accra Ghana for a football conference that led to the establishment of WAFF for the Kwame Nkrumah Gold Cup which replaced an annual Jalco Cup competed by just Nigeria and Ghana.

Reginald Allen and Effiom Okon represented Nigeria at the conference.

Dr. Patrick Ekeji, who retired as Director General of the National Sports Commission in 20l3, has hailed Bukola Olopade’s appointment as the new DG of the newly revived Nigeria’s apex Sports governing body.
Ekeji, who has traversed the wide spectrum of Nigerian sports as a participant, trainer, and administrator, informed Sports Village Square that Nigeria got it right with the combination of Shehu Dikko as Chairman and Olopade as the DG.
“He (Olopade) is competent. With Dikko, I am certain they’ll chart and execute a formidable pathway for success in our sports.”