Fifa bans Adamu and Temarii over World Cup vote claims
Baku, November 18 (AZERTAC). Fifa executive committee members Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii have been banned from voting in the 2018 and 2022 World Cup hosting ballot.
Adamu was banned from football activity for three years and Temarii for one year over claims they asked for money in exchange for World Cup votes.
The 2018 Spain-Portugal and 2022 Qatar bids were also cleared of collusion.
The ballot will proceed on 2 December with 22 voters - instead of 24 - and nine candidates across the two votes.
Following an investigation by Fifa`s ethics committee, Adamu - who has pleaded his innocence throughout - was fined £6,300 (10,000 Swiss francs) and Temarii £3,100 (5,000 Swiss francs), while four other Fifa officials, all former executive committee members, were suspended.
Ismael Bhamjee of Botswana was handed a four-year ban, Amadou Diakite of Mali and Ahongalu Fusimalohi of Tonga three-year punishments and Tunisia`s Slim Aloulou a two-year suspension.
All four were fined £6,300 (10,000 Swiss francs).
"For as long as I am in the ethics committee, we will have a zero tolerance policy for all violations of standards," said Fifa ethics committee chairman Claudio Sulser after a three-day hearing.
"We don`t want cheaters, we don`t want doping, we don`t want abuses to be accepted."
The actions of the Fifa ethics committee follow an English newspaper`s accusation that Nigerian Adamu and Tahitian Temarii, who is the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) president, allegedly asked for payments for votes.
Adamu and Temarii were secretly filmed by reporters from the Sunday Times, who posed as lobbyists for a consortium of American companies that wanted to bring the tournament to the US.
Adamu allegedly said he wanted $800,000 (£500,000) to build four artificial football pitches. This would be against Fifa`s rules he has been found guilty of breaching bribery rules.
The Sunday Times footage appeared to show him asking for money to be paid to him directly for endorsing a US bid.
Temarii is also alleged to have asked for a payment, in his case to finance a sports academy and he has breached rules on loyalty and confidentiality.
"I am profoundly disappointed with the ethics committee`s findings and had honestly believed I would be exonerated of any charges by now," said Adamu.
"I am innocent of all the charges levelled against me by the ethics committee and I completely refute the decision they have made.
"As yet I have not been advised of the grounds of the ethics committee`s decision but regardless, I will be lodging a full appeal against it with immediate effect."
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