By Abubakar Yunusa
Senegal on Wednesday called for an “independent international investigation” into corruption following the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) decision to strip the country of its Africa Cup of Nations title and award it to Morocco.
The cause of the controversy stemmed from several Senegalese players walking off the pitch in Rabat during the final on January 18 in protest when the hosts were awarded a penalty late in second-half stoppage time.
After Senegal’s players eventually returned having been coaxed back onto the pitch by captain Sadio Mane, Morocco missed the penalty and Pape Gueye went on to score the goal in extra time that gave his team a 1-0 victory.
But on Tuesday CAF sensationally reversed Senegal’s win, citing regulations about leaving the field.
“By calling into question a result achieved at the end of a match that was properly played and won in accordance with the rules of the game, the CAF seriously undermines its own credibility”, government spokeswoman Marie Rose Khady Fatou Faye said in a statement.
“Senegal unequivocally rejects this unjustified attempt at dispossession” she said, while calling for “an independent international investigation into suspected corruption within the CAF’s governing bodies”.
CAF said that having studied an appeal by Morocco, “the Senegal national team is declared to have forfeited the match” and the result was “officially recorded as 3-0” in favour of Morocco.
In her statement, Faye called the matter “a grossly illegal and profoundly unjust decision”.
“Senegal will pursue all appropriate legal avenues, including before the competent international courts, to ensure that justice is served and that the primacy of sporting results is restored”, she said.
Pending a final arbitration ruling, the secretary-general of the Senegalese Football Federation asked CAF in a letter “to suspend the execution of this decision and to freeze all trophy return procedures in Morocco”.
The letter also informed CAF of the federation’s “intention to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within 48 hours”.
Faye, in the government’s statement, additionally reiterated Senegal’s “solidarity with the Senegalese citizens detained in Morocco”, referring to 18 fans arrested for “hooliganism” during the match.
The fans were sentenced in February to punishments ranging from three months to one year in jail and fines worth up to $545.
They were accused of violence against security forces and of causing damage at the match, during which supporters tried to storm the pitch and threw projectiles.
The statement said Senegal was “fully committed to monitoring this situation to ensure a positive outcome as soon as possible”.
