FIFA suspends six officials after World Cup bid corruption probe
November 18th, 2010 - 9:42 pm ICT by BNO NewsZÜRICH, SWITZERLAND (BNO NEWS) — The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) on Thursday announced that its Ethics Committee banned six football officials from taking part in any football-related activity from one to four years, after breaching “various articles of the FIFA Code of Ethics” following a corruption probe.
The ban includes two FIFA Executive Committee members, Nigeria’s Amos Adamu and Tahiti’s Reynald Temarii (FIFA vice-president). They will be unable to participate in the voting that will decide the World Cup’s host for the 2018 and 2022 editions.
Adamu was suspended for three years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs ($10,120), while Temarii was suspended for one year and fined 5,000 Swiss francs ($5,043).
FIFA had opened proceedings against the two Executive Committee members on October 18 and had requested the Ethics Committee to conduct an independent, in-depth investigation into the matter.
The investigation comes after undercover reporters with the Sunday Times of London newspaper filmed Adamu and Remarii participating in bribing talks. According to the newspaper’s allegations, the committee members were willing to exchange their votes for offers to fund projects in their native countries.
In addition, four other officials involved in the investigation were suspended, Tunisia’s Slim Aloulou, banned two years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs; Tonga’s Ahongalu Fusimalohi, banned three years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs; Mali’s Amadou Diakite, banned three years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs; and Botswana’s Ismael Bhamjee, banned four years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs.
However, the Ethics Committee said it did not find “enough evidence of a violation of the Bid Registration document and the Code of Ethics” in regard to the alleged agreements between member associations and their Bid Committees for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup bidding process.
The decisions were taken under the chairmanship of Claudio Sulser and in a panel, which is also composed of five international officials, after a three-day meeting of the Ethics Committee held in Zurich.
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