Pascalinah Kabi
MASERU — World football governing body,
Fifa, last week threatened to take drastic steps against Lesotho if the Lesotho
Football Association (Lefa) does not deal with eight members who have taken the
association to court, the Sunday
Express can reveal. Lefa public relations officer, Thabo
Maretlane, on Monday told this paper they had requested Fifa’s advice on how to
deal with the eight after they sued Lefa over election results.
“We wrote to Fifa asking how to deal with
this matter and in its response, Fifa instructed us to deal with the eight
members accordingly or else it was going to take action against Lesotho as a
country,” Maretlane said. He said Lefa immediately wrote letters to
the eight members, including the Lesotho Football Coaching Association, to show
cause why they should not be suspended from any football activities for
dragging Lefa to court. “We then decided soon after our last
week’s meeting to write to the eight concerned members of the Lesotho Football
Coaching Association to explain why they should not be suspended,” Maretlane
said.
“Three of the coaching association members
have since replied and we had given everyone until yesterday (Wednesday) to
file their written replies with the association.” He however stressed that Fifa had not
given Lefa an ultimatum. “Fifa said we must get back to them as
soon as possible but there is no fixed date as that was not an ultimatum,” he
said. Under Fifa regulations it is illegal to
solve any football matters in the courts of law. Aggrieved members must follow channels
within their respective local associations.
If all those channels fail, such members
are allowed to lodge their complaints with Fifa’s disciplinary committee in
Zurich, Switzerland. Motlatsi Maseela, Khotso Seeiso, Motsoari
Lipholo, Tankiso Motloang, Letlaka Nkalai, Bonang Nthoatona, Lekhupane Setsase,
and Mosebo Motsoasele filed court papers last week demanding the nullification
of Lefa elections.
Lesotho Football Coaches Association is
also part of the lawsuit. The applicants are demanding that the new
Lefa executive committee “be interdicted from discharging official duties
pending finalisation of this application”.
In their application the eight say the
elections that ushered the new executive committee on December 22 last year
“should be declared null and void ab initio”. They also say “the first respondent (Lefa)
should hold fresh elections for membership of the national executive
committee”. They also want the president of (Lefa)
Advocate Salemane Phafane KC to be “interdicted from participating in the
preparation of the fresh elections of (Lefa)’s national executive committee”. They also want the decision made by the
outgoing Lefa national executive to confirm the District Football Association
(Difa) Mokhotlong elections on September 16 last year “set aside as irregular
as there were no elections on that day that were held and which could be
confirmed by (Lefa)’s NEC”.
They also want the court to order fresh
elections in Mokhotlong arguing that Lefa acted unlawfully when it confirmed
the September elections. Lioli football club executive members were
in 2010 banned from participating in any football related activities after they
dragged Lefa to court over the issue of participating in the Caf Champions
League. They were however reinstated after they
issued a public apology to Lefa and the football fraternity.
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