The World Governing Body of Football, FIFA appears to be shifting its position on the impasse between football managers and administrators on the one hand and the Sierra Leone Football Association on the other.
In a letter to Sport Minister Paul Kamara, FIFA Deputy Secretary General Markus Kattner referred to President Ernest Bai Koroma's effort to unite the football family by helping them negotiate the holding of their Congress in the northern town of Makeni last month. He said, "unfortunately, we were informed by the SLFA that the Congress aborted due to controversies surrounding the legitimacy of the delegates representing the SLFA members..."
Kattner promised that FIFA would "explore the possibilities to ensure a proper representation of the SLFA members such as the establishment of a working group whose composition could be discussed with the stakeholders..."
According to the letter, the working group would "identify the delegates according to the regulations in place. If a consensus is achieved about the composition of the group of persons...we are confident that the situation will improve with delegates whose legitimacy would not be argued anymore," said Kattner.
This comes after the Secretary to the President Emmanuel Osho-Coker wrote to FIFA inviting them to "send a mediation team to Sierra Leone to find a permanent and sustainable solution" to the "dispute between the executive of the Sierra Leone Football Association and a group of football stakeholders."
Meanwhile the interim head of the body that recently announced the dissolution of the SLFA executive has increased pressure on Johansen by telling FIFA "she can no longer represent the SLFA in any local or international forum including the forth-coming FIFA Congress...she has brought the game into disrepute for manipulating the delegates and depriving them of their constitutional rights."
Alhaji Unisa Alim Sesay said the "Isha Johansen led executive cannot panel any national side to represent Sierra Leone in any regional or international competition." In a letter to FIFA, Alhaji Alim Sesay said "Expenditures made by the Isha Johansen executive that have not received the approval of the membership of the SLFA...before and after the Makeni Congress..." are illegal.
No SLFA official was available for comment as we went to press.
© Politico 26/05/15
