Shameless Hayatou at it again

Petros Kausiyo Deputy Sports Editor
CAF president Issa Hayatou’s desperate bid to censure Philip Chiyangwa for staging a birthday and COSAFA celebration bash sunk to new depths on Thursday after he forced the informal meeting of football leaders convened by the ZIFA boss onto the agenda of the continental body’s executive meeting. Just days after being embarrassed in South Africa for lying he had secured the backing of the country’s President Jacob Zuma for the CAF presidency, Hayatou sank to a new low.

The CAF boss, through his secretary-general Hicham El Amrani, cited what he reckoned were some discrepancies in the way the invitation letters for Chiyangwa’s birthday bash were dispatched to the football leaders.

Amrani also informed Chiyangwa in the letter that Hayatou would not apologise for his sensational claims that the ZIFA president was trying to destabilise CAF.

Amrani also appeared to be still questioning the circumstances under which Infantino visited Harare suggesting that the fact that the FIFA leader was on a working visit, meant that the birthday bash was no longer an informal meeting.

“We have noted your reply dated 14 February, 2017 in relation to the above (Convening of presidents of members associations in Harare 24 February).

“You clearly state that you have convened an informal meeting in your personal capacity as Dr Philip Chiyangwa in Harare, Zimbabwe on February 24, 2017, such a meeting representing only a celebration of your victory at COSAFA as well as a belated celebration of your birthday.

“Hence let us at the outset extend a belated birthday wish to you for your birthday on 3 February and again offer our congratulations on your election as president of COSAFA.

“However, I must advise that we are somewhat surprised at the contents thereof, in that you appear to go to great lengths to advise or attempt to educate me on the provisions of both the CAF statutes and the FIFA regulations.

“For your information I am well versed with both documents and always strictly adhere to the provisions of the same.

“The purpose of our letter to you would appear to have been totally misunderstood by you and this could have arisen as a result of the wrong perception which you seem to create in your own letters, namely your letter addressed to the president of the Football Association of Zambia Mr Andrew Kamanga on your personal letterhead inviting him to celebrate your election as president of COSAFA as well as your birthday, whereas your letter on the same date addressed to the president of the Mali Football Association uses the COSAFA letterhead and merely refers to your election and makes no reference to your birthday.”

Chiyangwa indicated last night that he would soon send his response to Amrani with the ZIFA boss consulting his legal team on the move by CAF to discuss his fallout with Hayatou at their next executive committee meeting.

However, Amrani said they had also checked with FIFA on the status of Infantino’s visit to Zimbabwe and reckoned that the response they received from the world football governing body suggested, in their view, the gathering in Harare was not an “informal meeting’’.

“At the same time we were formally informed by FIFA that the visit of the FIFA president to Zimbabwe is aimed at visiting your federation and discuss football development with other stakeholders and present the FIFA development programme, Zimbabwe being the first stop of an African tour.

“As far as your personal celebrations are concerned, you are quite entitled to invite whomsoever you wish, but in view of the different letterheads used and the established work visit of the FIFA president, it does not seem indeed that it is an informal meeting.

“Finally, we have noted with much surprise your ambitious wish to have CAF present to you apologies. It would be preferable to think thoroughly about the same prior writing to CAF.

“For your information this matter will be tabled on the agenda of the upcoming meeting of the CAF executive committee,’’ wrote Amrani.

Tension between the CAF leadership and Chiyangwa has heightened ever since the ZIFA boss declared he was the election agent of Hayatou’s challenger Ahmad Ahmad of Madagascar.

The regional body which Chiyangwa leads — COSAFA — also spoke with one voice that they would back Ahmad in his bid to end Hayatou’s 29 year reign at the helm of CAF.

Much of the continental football focus has shifted to the impending CAF elections with some association leaders such as Nigeria Football Federation president Amaju Pinnick openly throwing his weight behind Ahmad.

Reports from Abuja also indicated yesterday that Pinnick had received the full backing of his association in his campaign against Hayatou.