ZURICH:
The Fifa Ethics Committee suspended one-time presidential candidate Mohamed bin Hammam and Fifa vice-president Jack Warner, while clearing the body’s president Sepp Blatter of corruption.
The committee, chaired by Namibian Petrus Damaseb, heard bin Hammam, Warner and Blatter during a dramatic day that started with bin Hammam withdrawing from the presidential election.
Two members of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU), Debbie Minguell and Jason Sylvester, who were said to have colluded with bin Hammam and Warner, were also suspended.
The presidential election will also go ahead as planned on June 1, announced Fifa Secretary-General Jerome Valcke after the ethics committee revealed its findings.
“Both bin Hammam and Warner were provisionally banned from future activity in football while a full investigation is carried out,” announced Damaseb. “There, they can confront their accusers.
“The critical consideration is to ensure the investigation is not compromised and that is why we have provisionally suspended them.
“Our concern is a potential interference with the investigations, so it justifies us taking these measures. The hearing will be fair.”
Bin Hammam, Warner and the two CFU officials had been summoned to the ethics committee to answer corruption allegations but the CFU pair failed to appear despite FIFA offering to fly them in at their own expense.
Bin Hammam and Warner were targeted after Chuck Blazer, general secretary of regional football body CONCACAF, reported possible misdeeds during a May 10 and 11 meeting in Trinidad.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 30th, 2011.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ