- Club presidents have expressed a unanimous call for the state to pay it’s subvention directly into the clubs coffers and audit the use of the funds by FECAFOOT in the previous seasons
- They also expressed concerns about the precarious situation of Referees while calling on the state to ensure they are paid to curb corruption
- The presidents also expressed the need to improve on the management of football in the country generally as the current set up is not sustainable
26 MTN Elite One and Two club presidents or their representatives have called on president Paul Biya to step in and stop an impending uproar that could befall Cameroon football due to the current atmosphere between them and the actual executive of the Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT) led by Samuel Eto’o Fils.
The Presidents made the call on Wednesday, December 18 during an ad-hoc meeting convened by Minster Narcisse Mouele Kombi at the conference hall of the country’s ministry of Sports and physical education.
The 2pm appointment that was attended by representatives of Cotonsport, Canon Yaoundé, Dragon, Fauve Azur Elite, Fortuna, Bafmeng United, Aigle Royal of Moungo, YAFOOT, YOSA, Djiko FC, Eding Sport de la Lekie amongst others provided a platform for clubs to present a clear picture of the current reality vis-a-vis Elite One and Two grants that have been allocated by the government while making recommendations to be channeled to the head of state via minister Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, who recommended the gathering.
Speaking during the start of the meeting, minister Narcisse Mouele Kombi appreciated the efforts of club presidents and investors so far and recommended they be steadfast and provide the right facts to be channeled to the head of state who was given a standing ovation for his recent CAF honor given him 48 hours earlier for his efforts in football development.
The minister signaled the absence of the FECAFOOT president on permission though he failed to send a representative despite being duly invited for the deliberations.
When the minister gave room for club presidents to make recommendations on the use of the 560 millions FCFA allocated clubs as support for payment of salaries in professional football, almost all the club presidents rather dissected events of the past and made strong recommendations to the minister of Sports.
Per Kome Max of Dragon Yaoundé FC, the meeting was timely convened for club presidents to express themselves as such a platform hasn’t been provided by FECAFOOT in the past three years under the current executive.
He added that, the state should quickly look into what was done with the state subventions in the past three seasons and set up a scheme to pay directly to the clubs henceforth while clubs also engage in respecting their commitments with their players and report the use of the funds to the state at the end of the season.
President Joseph Feutcheu of Djiko FC of Bandjoun narrated his ordeal of the past two seasons vis-a-vis refereeing and fairness in the competition. He revealed he had not received a dime as subventions in the past three seasons. A position shared by other clubs despite state handing the cash to FECAFOOT. He recommended government deals directly with clubs and even went further to say the current FECAFOOT team needs to be kicked out if government aims to savage football.
Faustin Domkeu, president of defunct New Stars of Douala who was invited to the meeting to provide an inside on how state subventions were managed during his days as vice president of the Cameroon Professional Football League (LFPC) added to the call for state to directly transfer the funds for salaries into clubs’ confers without necessarily transiting through FECAFOOT.
The 2017 Cup of Cameroon winning president also called on the state to see into it that the professional football management structure be revamped so as to put an end to a four year transition which he qualified too long.
Pascal Dissock, president of Bamboutos FC of Mbouda charged the state to quickly look into the situation of management of gate takings as FECAFOOT’s newfound policy of collection of the cash and ferrying it to Yaoundé without accounting to clubs risk sparking an uproar if nothing is done, Nya Norbert of Fauve Azur Elite and Alain Nseke of Aigle Royal of Moungo seconded the point which was later raised by at least five other club presidents.
President Nya Norbert of Fauve Azur Elite and Secretary General of the Association of Elite Club Presidents expressed concerns about returns on investment in the cup of Cameroon as clubs barely see their prize money. To him, the current 100 millions FCFA allocated as prize money for the entire competition is not commensurate to the expenditures made by the clubs en route to the final and even at that clubs don’t receive their prize money which is a concern.
Emma Mimba of YOSA of Bamenda expressed concerns about the declining and discouraging state of Cameroon football under the current set up while asking for a review of the option of Northwest Elite One clubs only playing matches away now whereas they played at home even during the pick of the social unrest in the restive Northwest and Southwest Regions.
Without mincing words, he revealed YOSA was coerced into signing a marketing charter which they know no details of the fallout and pleaded the state looks into the non payment of their subventions last season.
Representatives of Fortuna, ISOHSA, Bafmeng United, Canon Yaoundé, Cotonsport of Garoua also made salient points and asked for government actions to save football which could enter a state of total chaos if nothing is done.
There was a collective call for the government to look into the situation of Referees and refereeing in the MTN Elite One and Two championships because going for games without pay made room for corruption which obviously affects the development of football negatively.
Government was asked to take a closer look into contracts signed by FECAFOOT for fiscal reasons and more.
A cross section of clubs called out ACEC and it’s executive led by Pascal Abunde. They accused them of serving as accomplices in the scheme to suffocate clubs.
There was the notable absence of the representatives of Avion Academy, PWD of Bamenda, Ngokentundja FC, Fovu of Baham, Panthere of Nde and Victoria United FC from the meeting.
Beyond Elite football’s collection of cankerworms, there was a call for the state to look into general governance of the game at grassroot level which breeds talents for the Elite Clubs.
The non issuance of players licences to the likes of Poive de Penja, Mount Cameroon FC of Buea, FC Bamenda and Prisons Buea FC as a way of punishment for having a different perspective on how football is managed made it to the debate room and caused the minister to ink it for transmission to hierarchy and his own actions.
At the end of the meeting, the minister thanked the clubs for their presence and promised to take their worries to the head of state for immediate actions including their recommendation of paying 2/3 of the subventions to Elite One clubs and 1/3 to Elite Two clubs.
Talking immediate actions, the bank details of clubs were assembled and handed to the minister whose first action from the working session is seemingly directly payment of Club subventions to the clubs themselves without going through an intermediate body as recommended during the meeting.
While all these was happening at the ministry, match day three matches of the MTN Elite One championship took place across the national territory with the likes of Union Sportif of Douala, Victoria United FC registering impressive wins while Cotonsport, Fauve Azur Elite, Stade Renard of Melong, Canon Yaoundé picked up one point from matches drawn between them. Victoria United’s 2-0 against Astres courtesy a Nathan Douala brace and Union’s 3-1 win against YOSA was their second victory of the season as FECAFOOT puts to use the 350 millions already received from government for organisational purposes.
Elsewhere in Bafang and in the MTN Elite Two championship, Unisport of Bafang mauled Ngokentundja FC by 5-1 in a delayed match day one game while day two matches are scheduled this weekend.
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