Once upon a time there lived a man.....Iya Mohammed

Iya Mohammed and his arrest have made headlines this week in the Cameroonian media and in public debate. The current President of the Cameroonian Football Federation was arrested after the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon suffered a 2-0 defeat to the Sparrow Hawks of Togo in the build up to the AFCON 2015 and World Cup 2014 qualifies in Africa. His long-awaited arrest is related to his alleged embezzlement at cotton company SODECOTON where he is General Manager. Much has been said and will continue to be said about the issue given that it comes at a time when Cameroonian football is in the grip of a recession and the fight against corruption continues to be waged here and there. Now that most have spoken and the room is now silent, let’s run that Iya tape again and see what has been left unsaid or said without vehemence. Without belabouring the point, let’s explore the Iya saga otherwise, using questions.

1)      What has become of the principle of presumption of innocence that was recently officially enshrined in our criminal law system with the promulgation of the criminal procedure code? Take a listen to some and you’d think Mr Iya Mohammed has already had his day in court and has failed to prove his innocence? The last time I checked he was mainly being held for questioning? We’re not his lawyers but we’re just saying.

2)      What alternative do we have in case Mr Iya Mohammed is ultimately disqualified from running for the presidency of FECAFOOT? His two challengers, Mr John B. Ndeh and Marlene Emvoutou, have yet to convince the Cameroonian public that their respective visions can reboot and sustainably revive our ailing football structure. Marlen Emvoutou has allegedly promised to put in a billion CFAF but will that halt the Lions' decline and get out local league on the fast track to professionalisation? Mr John B. Ndeh apparently has a website with his vision, but his site doesn’t talk and isn’t he supposed to take his message to Cameroonians and not the other way round? (We know only regional FECAFOOT delegates vote but the Cameroonian public, underwriters of FECAFOOT’s activities, deserve some wooing at the very least). These challengers have yet to show that they’ll be any better than Mr Iya Mohammed, so decried and so isolated when the going gets a tough.

3)      Why has Mr Iya Mohammed become the villain all of a sudden? Is it because he is guilty of managerial impropriety or is it because our much-beloved Lions can no longer catch any prey and as usual we need someone credible enough to take the blame? We’re just asking because when the Lions outroared the Teranga Lions in 2002 and clipped the wings of the Super Eagles in 2000 in Lagos, Iya could do no wrong. Or is it because we just want to exit the Northerner and get our own guy in?

The fight against corruption should be waged unrelentingly, given. But in an attempt to quench the thirst of the Cameroonian public, let's remember: Iya Mohammed is innocent until proven guilty after a free and fair trail; if he can't bid for FECAFOOT's presidency, we should make sure his successor performs better than he did. Should these considerations be swept aside in the current battle for the helm of FECAFOOT then we may not be any better off even after we finally fail to qualify for all the competitions we are aiming for.