The media was awash on Tuesday 2nd of June 2015 of the President of the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA), Sepp Blatter’s, intension to step down from his exalted office just four days after he was re-elected for his fifth term.
This is coming on the heels of arrests of some officials of the world football governing body on charges of racketeering, fraud and money laundering as part of a US investigation which indicted 14 people. The arrests were made on behalf of US authorities following an FBI investigation that has been under way for at least three years.
For sure, the 79-year-old Sepp Blatter has been the FIFA’s president since 1998 and is said to have brought a lot of development in the game of football internationally. In fact, some sports analysts are of the view that his management of FIFA made a tremendous impact even in African football. Indeed, there is no doubt that Blatter has a lot of passion for his job as FIFA President so much so that he would have loved to continue to be in the office.
But the recent discovery of a high profile corruption taking place in FIFA has, indeed, left a great dent on Blatter himself. Although he was not indicted in the whole bribery and corruption scandal, what has happened in the organisation under his watch, according to commentators, is also an indictment on him. While some analysts believe he was aware of what was going on as he looked the other way due to his love for power , others insist that he may not have been aware that such deep rooted corruption exists in the system. But it appears that Blatter’s decision to resign is a matter of principle following the widespread criticism for presiding over a FIFA bedeviled by system failure and corruption.
Meanwhile, some keen followers of the developments in the whole FIFA saga argue that by Blatter’s decision to step down, he has demonstrated that the progress of the institution is greater than personal ambition. Hear him: “What counts most to me is the institution of FIFA and football around the world.”
But again, while announcing his decision, he was reported to have said that he would introduce ‘far reaching and fundamental reforms’ before he finally drops the mantle of leadership at the extraordinary FIFA congress scheduled to hold between December 2015 and March 2016. Ultimately, the exit of Blatter and his association with FIFA as its president would not be forgotten in a hurry by football lovers round the world.
DAILY INDEPENDENT
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