Mohamed Bin Hamman, 2010
LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne has agreed to hear the case of Mohamed Bin Hammam vs Fifa, the international football body 18 and 19 April.
He was given a life ban from football in 2011 after a scandal surfaced in May over alleged payments for votes in an election bid to unseat Sepp Blattner as president of Fifa.
AP reports that Bin Hammam is also involved in a legal tussle with the Asian football body: “Bin Hammam, who denies wrongdoing, is involved in a second appeal to stop the Asian Football Confederation from replacing him as president.”
The group’s elections are scheduled for March. He earlier lost an appeal to CAS to hear his case against the same group for dismissing him as its president.
Mohamed bin Hammam dropped out of the presidential race early Sunday and Fifa provisionally suspended him Sunday evening
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – Fifa, the international football body, Sunday 29 May provisionally suspended four officials from any involvement in football worldwide while it continues it investigation into possible breaches of the organization’s code of ethics.
But the case against President Sepp Blatter was dismissed. Blatter appeared before the committee Sunday. He is now running for re-election, with no one else in the race.
Vice-president Jack A Warner and Fifa executive committee member Mohamed bin Hammam may not take “part in any football-related activity (administrative, sports or any other) worldwide after [the ethics committee examined] their cases in relation to alleged violations of the Fifa Code of Ethics linked to the upcoming FIFA presidential election”, the committee said in a statement issued Sunday evening in Zurich.
The election is scheduled for 3 June. “The allegation can be summed up as follows,” Petrus Damaseb, vice-president of the ethics committee said at a press conference after the all-day meeting. “The meeting was called to take place at the 10-11 of May in Port au Prince in Trinidad & Tobago, and at that meeting individuals there present were offered sums of money to vote for Mr bin Hamman, that is the essence of the allegation.” The sum in question was $40,000.
Petrus Damaseb, speaking for Fifa's ethics committee, led a press conference Sunday night
“The ethics committee considered that a provisional suspension was required while the investigation continues, taking into account the gravity of the case and the likelihood that a breach of the Fifa code of ethics and the Fifa disciplinary code has been committed. Meanwhile, regarding the ethics proceedings opened against Fifa President Joseph S Blatter at the request of Mohamed bin Hammam for a potential breach of the Fifa code of ethics, all charges were dismissed in full, as the ethics committee found that no breach of the code of ethics had been committed.”
Two Caribbean Football Union officials were also provisionally suspended: Debbie Minguell and Jason Sylvester. Their possible breaches of the code are also under investigation.
The members of the ethics committee panel reviewing the various accusations are: deputy chairman Petrus Damaseb (Namibia) and members Juan Pedro Damiani (Uruguay), Sondre Kaafjord (Norway), Les Murray (Australia) and Robert Torres (Guam).
Update 29 May 18:55 ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – (Ed. note: AFP is reporting Sunday evening, but it is not yet confirmed elsewhere, that Blatter has been cleared, bin Hammam has been suspended while the investigation continues, and the 1 June election is to go ahead)
The contentious vote for the new president of Fifa, the international football governing body, became a lot simpler Sunday 29 May, with current president Sepp Blatter remaining the only one running. Mohamed bin Hammam, who opposed him, declared on his web site in the early hours of Sunday that he is pulling out of the race.
The two appeared for hearings as part of an investigation by Fifa’s ethics committee, which is meeting Sunday 29 May.
“I cannot allow the name that I loved to be dragged more and more in the mud because of competition between two individuals. The game itself and the people who love it around the world must come first. It is for this reason that I announce my withdrawal from the presidential election,” he notes on his site.
“I will not put my personal ambition ahead of FIFA’s dignity and integrity. Besides, I believe my candidacy has been a catalyst for debate within FIFA and has brought change to the top of the agenda. I pray that my withdrawal will not be tied to the investigation held by the FIFA Ethics Committee as I will appear before the Ethics Committee to clear my name from the baseless allegations that have been made against me.”
Sepp Blatter (photo: Agencia Brasil, Roosewelt Pinheiro/Abr)
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – Down to the wire, with less than a week to go in the election for the post of president of Fifa, world football’s governing body, and the fight for the job is sullied by allegations of corruption against both candidates. The Fifa ethics committee Friday 27 May agreed to summon President Sepp Blatter, who is standing for re-election, acting on yesterday’s request by executive committee member Mohamed bin Hammam.
Blatter is to appear before the committee Sunday, three days before the election.
Bin Hammam was summoned to appear before the committee Wednesday.
The committee is investigating charges made last week of alleged cash payments to delegations attending a special meeting of the Caribbean Football Union. The latest accusations of corruption against Fifa officials continue a string of scandals, as well as questions about how the 2018 and 2022 games were awarded.
Britain’s sport minister, Hugh Robertson, said in a statement Friday that “The Fifa presidential election campaign has descended into a farce,” Robertson said in a statement.” Robertson has “hinted” that national football/soccer bodies may want to break away from Fifa, Reuters reports.
