A big moral victory

THE Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) decision to postpone the election of its extra FIFA Council members could be seen as a moral victory for Qatar Football Association Vice-President Saud Abdulaziz Al Mohannadi, who was barred in the last minute from contesting for one of the three positions despite getting an all clear following an integrity check conducted by the world body’s ethics committee.

It was the last-minute debarring of Al Mohannadi, vice-president of the Qatar Football Association, that irked the majority of AFC members who overwhelmingly voted against going ahead with the elections on Tuesday.

FIFA advised the AFC to block Al Mohannadi from running only two days before the elections although the Adjudicatory Chamber had not taken a decision on the recommendation of Investigatory Chamber to ban him for two-and-a-half years.

An AFC statement said last Sunday, “FIFA has advised us, based on the report of its Investigatory Chamber, it has decided Saud A Aziz Al Mohannadi isn’t eligible to stand in the elections for the Council.”

Most delegates opined it was unfair to have banned Al Mohannadi, especially when the Investigatory Chamber, while recommending the ban, had clearly stated “until a formal decision is taken by the Adjudicatory Chamber, the accused is presumed innocent.”

It was the Adjudicatory Chamber’s failure to take a decision that led to this unprecedented situation of the congress being called off as the members overwhelmingly rejected its agenda. 

However, even if he is acquitted by the Adjudicatory Chamber, Al Mohannadi’s chances of having another crack at a FIFA Council seat look unlikely. It is learnt the AFC is set to adopt the recommendation of its Governance Task Force to make it mandatory that all candidates to key positions, both within the confederation and FIFA, should be none other than presidents of national associations. 

e-mail: rk@dohastadiumplusqatar.com