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Confederation of African Football President Issa Hayatou has been at
the helm of the continent’s governing body for close to two decades,
and there appears to be no let-off soon, if recent developments are anything to go by.

In office since late 1997, the CAF supremo, just like his counterparts who cling onto political office by hook or
crook, seems either by design or default, to be tightening his mangle-like grip on the position, much to the dismay of certain quarters that appear set to go against the grain and unseat the
Cameroonian.

The seasoned honcho however does not seem too keen to go home, at least not yet.

African leaders will do anything to hold on to power and where necessity demands; hide behind powerful and ruthless cliques that help them maintain the status quo.

True to the old adage, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

CAIRO  CAF EXTRAORDINARY CONGRESS

The CAF congress that recently sat in Cairo almost overwhelmingly shot
down a proposal to scrap a prohibitive clause on eligibility to vie
for presidency.

The unpopular rule, clause 18 of the football statutes, allows only the twelve Executive Committee members to
challenge for the prime position.

Loud echoes have since rung out
across the dark continent, labelling the narrative a cabal of sorts, a latter day ‘exclusive members club’ that seeks to firmly shut out emerging and/or alternative voices.

Little known Djibouti played the proverbial Devil’s advocate, fronting
the motion that garnered a paltry but very strong  16 votes, falling far short of the needed threshold.

For a nation considered football dwarfs in Africa, his was very brave of their Football Federation, venturing where
others dare not, not least the powerhouses.

Kenya’s very own Football Kenya Federation was present, ably
represented by President Nick Mwendwa.

His conduct in the eye of the
Kenyan public was however considered cowardly if not ignominious.

He, alongside Ethiopia Football Federation’s Junedin Basha opted to
abstain, thereby rendering their presence in the congress ineffective
by and large.

Eyebrows were expectedly raised, with the public opinion court insisting Mwendwa should have borne in mind he was representing the views of a whole republic, as opposed to a personal affront.

Many argued it was the perfect opportunity to step out of the imposing
shadow and establishing a new African order, literally in with the new
out with the old.

As a whole from the Cecafa perspective, while Kenya and Ethiopia
chickened out, Eritrea and Burundi bit the bullet and voted ‘No’,
while Sudan, South Sudan, Rwanda, Uganda and Somalia by show of hand
voted ‘Yes’ a great sign of bravery against a congress determined to give Hayatou and his henchmen more years at the helm of Caf.

ANOTHER TERM

Incumbent Issa Hayatou, a good student of deposed FIFA strongman Sepp
Blatter, is by all indications well and truly on his way to a fresh
term rubber stumped by the clueless congress.

The congress vote is a crystal clear indicator where the pendulum will swing when the ballot comes onto the fray in 2017.

The spineless will play their usual role of escorts and outriders while dissenting voices will be forced to kowtow.

But it’s prudent to note the 16 countries who voted for the amendment have set the ball rolling in essence saying enough is enough though they will be targeted they have shown that they are tired of the status quo and ready to bite the bullet even of it means breaking away from the forest of greedy leaders who have decided to hold on to power like it’s their own personal property.

Ex- CAF Media Expert. An expert on African football with over 15 years experience ,always with an ear to the ground with indepth knowledge of the game. I have worked for top publications including 7 years at www.supersport.com until i founded www.soka25east.com to quench the thirst of football lovers across the continent. I have trained young upcoming journalists who are now a voice in African football.I have covered World Cup,AFCON,CHAN,Champions League,Confederations Cup,Cecafa,Cosafa,Wafu and many other football tournaments across the World. Founder Football Africa Arena(FAA),Founder www.afrisportdigital.com

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