By Andrew Warshaw
October 6 – Wherever he travels at present, Tokyo Sexwale is asked the same question. Will he be running for Fifa president? The South African human rights icon keeps giving the same diplomatic answer, that he has not yet made up his mind. But he only has until October 26 to do so.
With the February election to replace Sepp Blatter in danger of descending into farce given the respective clouds hanging over both Michel Platini and Chung Mong-Joon, many believe Sexwale would provide some much-needed stability and integrity.
But the former Robben Island prisoner, now a successful businessman, is keeping his cards close to his chest.
Speaking in Kitzbuhel during the Camp Beckenbauer annual conference, Sexwale, who already has a FIFA role as head of the monitoring group trying to patch up differences between Palestine and Israel, again gave little away.
“A lot of must be done and we must think very carefully and see where we are going. October 26 is the closing date so before that time you shall hear me,” he told reporters.
Sexwale recognises the urgency to clean FIFA up but stopped short of blaming Blatter for the current meltdown, perhaps conscious of the need to gain the outgoing president’s backing in the event he decides to stand.
“The brand is seriously and severely damaged,” he said. “(But) Blatter has been a great leader. When you are in trouble everyone runs away from you and forget your good works. He has done well for FIFA but at this stage it is the FIFA executive committee who must decide what should happen.
“I think all of us are in a very difficult situation and I feel for Mr Blatter and his family. It is a difficult time but I’m sure he will apply his mind and act in line with what is good for FIFA but also what is good for himself and his family. We are all hurt by what is happening but FIFA will come right.”
Sexwale acknowledged the grave concerns of World Cup sponsors who have asked Blatter to step down immediately, a request he has refused.
“I can understand … because they are more than sponsors to FIFA, they are partners and their voice is very important. I believe in the Mandela Way: there should be some discussions and people should apply their minds and if anything should happen it must be after a proper discussion.”
Beckenbauer, a former FIFA executive committee member who led Germany’s 2006 World Cup bid, believes Sexwale would be a serious challenger .
“As a confidante of (Nelson) Mandela he knows the political arena well and also gained football experience at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa,” Beckenbauer told Germany’s Bild am Sonntag newspaper. “Maybe it would do FIFA good to have a president who comes from the outside.” Sexwale has just conducted the first meeting of FIFA’s Middle East mediation group, which aims to facilitate the movement of Palestinian players and equipment. The discussions were attended by Israeli Football Association president Ofer Eini and his Palestinian Football Association counterpart Jibril Rajoub.
“We understand that there is a bigger security and political picture that we cannot resolve,” he said. “But we’d like to clear those things from the decks so that people can play football.”
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