Zurich: A day after UEFA President Michel Platini was questioned by Swiss authorities over a FIFA payment, presidential election rival Prince Ali bin al-Hussein on Saturday touted himself as the safe choice to rid the governing body of corruption.
The Jordanian prince is Platini’s main rival in a February election to replace Sepp Blatter, who became a formal subject of a criminal investigation into football corruption on Friday. Blatter was questioned over a 2011 “disloyal payment” of 2 million Swiss francs (about $2 million) to Platini that was supposedly for work carried out at least nine years earlier. Platini, who was questioned as a witness, denies wrongdoing. However, if he is implicated in the probe surrounding Blatter it could benefit Prince Ali’s chances of winning the Feb. 26 poll.
“The need for new leadership that can restore the credibility of FIFA has never been more apparent,” Prince Ali said in a statement. “We cannot change the past, but we can have a future where FIFA member associations are able to focus on football rather than worrying about the next scandal or criminal investigation involving FIFA leadership.”
A rift has grown between Platini and Prince Ali since the UEFA president backed the Jordanian federation chief’s failed bid to unseat Blatter in May.
Blatter was re-elected for a fifth term despite close allies being indicted days earlier as part of a U.S. investigation into bribery and fraud in football. Four days later, the 79-year-old president hastily announced plans to quit.
Now FIFA must decide whether to suspend Blatter, as it did with his right-hand man, Secretary General Jerome Valcke, after he was implicated in a scheme to sell tickets for the 2014 World Cup on the black market. At the same time, FIFA is trying to rush through reforms to its governance in a bid to regain the confidence of the football world.
The prince denounced Platini as “not good for FIFA” after the Frenchman launched his campaign in July. (AP)
