By Andrew Warshaw
November 10 – Sri Lanka’s former FIFA executive committee member Vernon Manilal Fernando, once regarded in some quarters as the footballing Godfather of South Asia, will have his Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) appeal against being banned by FIFA for alleged corruption heard next week.
According to the website of the CAS, sport’s highest appeal court, the case of Vernon Manilal Fernando v. FIFA will take place on November 20, just over a year after he was thrown out for breaking ethics rules including conflict of interest and bribery.
FIFA has never specified details of the case but Fernando, who became an exco member in 2011, was a close associate of banned former Asian Football Confederation chief Mohamed bin Hammam. He served as FIFA’s regional development officer in South Asia when project funds were directed by a Bin Hammam-chaired committee.
Initially, FIFA ethics judge Hans-Joachim Eckert suspended Fernando for eight years in April 2013. However, prosecutor Michael Garcia challenged the sanction and FIFA’s appeals committee subsequently imposed a life ban.
For his part, bin Hammam was originally banned for his role in the cash-for-votes scandal of 2011 in the Caribbean where he is understood to have been accompanied by Fernando. That was overturned by the CAS, only for FIFA to impose the same sanction once again, this time following an investigation into bin Hammam’s management of AFC accounts and commercial contracts. Fernando’s ethics case soon followed.
In Fernando’s case, FIFA have never explained precisely how he violated its code of ethics or why it won’t make such violations public, a point that is bound to be contested by his legal team next week.
The former Sri Lankan powerbroker has made no public comment ahead next week’s hearing but last year his lawyers said he was determined to clear his name. “Mr. Fernando is confident that he will be able to receive justice before CAS,” a statement said.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1734790920labto1734790920ofdlr1734790920owedi1734790920sni@w1734790920ahsra1734790920w.wer1734790920dna1734790920