South Korean businessman and politician, Chung Mong-joonhas declared his bid to contest for the forthcoming FIFA Presidential election, declaring that he bring desired changes into the world’s football governing body if elected on February 26, 2016.
Chung, a former vice-president of FIFA and major shareholder of the industrial giant Hyundai, announced his bid on July 30, with a counter declaration that Michel Platiniwas not the right man for Fifa. “If I get elected, my job is not to enjoy the luxury of the office; my job is to change it,” he said.
Mr. Chung, who believes he has a “good chance” of winning the poll next February, argues that: “It is time that Fifa had a non-European leadership. “Fifa became a closed organisation for President Blatter, his associates and his cronies and I want to change that.”
According to the 63-year-old Korean business mogul, who is worth $1.2bn (£769m) according to Forbes, “it will be very difficult for MrPlatini to have any meaningful reforms.” “Mr.Platini enjoys institutional support from the current structure of Fifa; he is very much a product of the current system,” he argues.
Chung lost his Fifa vice-presidency in 2010, to Prince Ali Bin al-Hussein of Jordan, who unsuccessfully stood against Blatter in May’s presidential election.
Meanwhile, Argentina football great Diego Maradona has made a bizarre declaration of his readiness to fight the “mafia” behind the corruption in Fifa, but refused to state whether he would run for president or not. “I have to fight the mafia that still remains inside Fifa. I have to fight those who have for a long time stolen from inside Fifa,” the 54-year-old former World Cup winner said in an interview with television channel America. However, when asked if he would run for the presidency, Mr. Maradona’s only response was “I really want to be in FIFA!”.
By Olisemeka Obeche
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