Sports

Isha Johansen & Sepp Blatter

A group of football administrators in Sierra Leone has said it will petition President Ernest Bai Koroma to consider “setting up a judicial inquiry to investigate the activities of the Sierra Leone Football Association.”

Some football fans have staged a peaceful demonstration yesterday and later converged on the Cotton Tree to “mourn the death of football in Sierra Leone”.

Calling themselves the Patriotic Citizens and Concerned Sports fans, the processors about 200 in number, mainly young people who are involved with the sports, said they were concerned at the deterioration of interest in the game.

FC Johansen Football Club has pulled out of the proposed premier league being organized by the Football Stakeholders schedule to commence this weekend.

According to John Keister, head Coach of FC Johansen, his team will not be part of the league which is not recognized by the SLFA.

FC Johasen is owned and managed by Isha Johansen who heads the other faction of the FA.

FC Johansen is guided with the rules and directive of the SLFA which they will adhere to as a member, Keister told Politico Sports.

As the date for the nationwide league approaches, 13 out of 14 premier league football clubs across the country are currently bracing-up for the kick-off this weekend.

The league which is organized by the rival faction of the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) who called themselves the Stakeholders is scheduled to start on Saturday 30^th January at the Siaka Stevens Stadium.

After winning the 2013 COFA Inter-Community league title, Wellington Community was challenged with the issue of sharing the winning bonus of twenty-five million Leones.

Abdul Rashid Conteh, Chairman of Wellington Sports Association (WSA), said that few members at that time wanted the money shared whilst others were opposed to it and were of the opinion that the money should be kept for developmental purposes in the association’s account.

“We decided finally as an executive to deposit the money into the account,” Conteh said.

The world governing body of Athletics, IAAF has certified the presidency of Abdul Karim Sesay amidst controversy of a botched congress last December.

Sesay confirmed to Politico Sports that he has received several correspondences from IAAF which clearly shows that they are recognized his new executive.

“After the chaos at the previous venue we moved to another venue were the elective congress was held and that each and every member of the SLAA was in attendance including the NOC and the Ministry of sports.

Dove Cut Community has expressed their disappointment over the Central One Football Association (COFA) resolved not to accept them in this year’s Community league.

According to the secretary general of Dove Cut, Unisa Kamara he said that the competition is meant for communities and not streets, citing the example of Kissy Road being included in the competition which he says is not a community.

‘’We do not rely on bribing to participate” Kamara alleged.

When questioned about the issue of bribery, Kamara replied in the affirmative that he is confident of what he said.