FIFA President Gianni Infantino (C-L) and Fouzi Lekjaa (C-R), 3rd Vice President of CAF, speak to the press during the 12th CAF Extraordinary General Assembly meeting in the Egyptian Red Sea resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh on September 30, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / MOHAMED EL-SHAHED
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) yesterday endorsed FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, whose current tenure end in June next year, for a second term in office, reports cafonline.com.
At its 12th extraordinary general assembly yesterday in Egypt, CAF President, Ahmad Ahmad appealed to delegates to throw their weight behind Infantino for another term in office, adding, “I profoundly announce that CAF will support (Gianni) Infantino for another term.�
Ahmad called on the president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), Fouzi Lekjaa, who doubles as CAFâ€
s third vice president, to formalize the support.
“On behalf of my colleagues, I gladly announce that the delegates (present here) are in support of second mandate for FIFA President Gianni Infantino. You (Infantino) have shown great commitment to the activities and development of African football, and we would like to give you more time to further your reforms,� Lekjaa declared to a resounding applause from fellow delegates.
Ahmad reiterated his quest to see African football develop into a model built on the tenets of democracy and transparency.
“CAF needs a new dimension to regain the values of Africa,â€� he said whilst regretting the performance of African teams at the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018, where none of the five teams (Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal and Tunisia) made it past the group stage, the worst performance the continentâ€s representatives in decades.
He also called for support to Lydia Nsekera, FIFA Council member, who has declared her intentions to contest for the presidency of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA).
In his reply, an emotional FIFA President, Infantino said, “the support for another term means a lot to me�, whilst pledging more support for the African confederation.
“Africa is the future. FIFA is committed to developing Africaâ€s passion for football via the FIFA Forward so the game can reach its potential in each African nation & everyone who wants to take part can do so without barriers.
“Iâ€m happy and proud that CAF embraced VAR. It shows that CAF is in line with modern trends of football.
VAR did not change football; rather VAR has helped football and referees.�
Another important item on the agenda of extraordinary general assembly was the election of African representative to the FIFA Council for the Anglophone Linguistic Group to replace Kwesi Nyantakyi (Ghana) who resigned last June.
Malawian Walter Nyamilandu got the nod after two rounds of voting.
CAF endorses Infantino for second term, Nyamilandu elected into FIFA Council
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