By Abdelaziz Abuhamar
June 10 – Former CAF General Secretary Amr Fahmy has made a rare TV statement on the corruption investigations against CAF president Ahmad Ahmad, (pictured) claiming that his case was inspired by Egypt President Abdelfattah Al-Sisi.
Fahmy, the son of former CAF general secretary Mustafa Fahmy, told TV anchor Amr Adeeb in Al-Hekaya (The Story) TV Show broadcast daily on MBC Masr channel that he has nothing to do with the French criminal investigations against CAF President.
Ahmad was seized in Paris last week by Officers from France’s Central Office for Combating Corruption and Financial and Tax Crimes (OCLCIFF) at the luxury Hotel de Berri where he was staying for the FIFA Congress along with FIFA Council colleagues. He was later freed as the CAF official website claimed “without charge”.
“I am not the one who filed a case against him (Ahmad) to the French authority,” the low-profile Fahmy answered when he was asked about the case. This is the first comment from the ex-CAF General Secretary since his dismissal in April 2019.
Amr told the TV show: “It is my first time to show up on TV, first and foremast I would like to thank Egypt President Abdelfattah Al-Sisi who guided me to this (and I can’t give details for legal reasons).
“I saw him (the president) in the African Anti-Corruption Forum and this meet-up raised my morale,” he continued.
“I was not happy with what was going on (within CAF), although I drew huge salary but I was not working for food, I was working for values and ethics,” he stressed.
“I am the one who opened an investigation against his boss while I was in service and my case is now with FIFA and (on this case) I am not willing to comment.”
“I am not worried,” he said, “and would like to reassure president Sisi, Egypt government and Egypt people that what is now going on has nothing to do with the Egypt host of AFCON 2019 as Egypt is always fighting corruption.”
Fahmy went on to explain some of his background within CAF, saying: “I was working with Issa Hayatou (former CAF president), there has been things that I did not like, so I resigned in 2015 and let me tell you that the current government in Egypt are fighting corruption so they supported the man who was standing against Hayatu without knowing who is he?
“I accepted to take my position (as General Secretary) with the new president Ahmad Ahmad for a reason, I wanted to refine the TV contracts which Egypt government was not happy with, these TV contracts are now even worse,” he explained.
Fahmy for the first time hinted at a core issue inside CAF when he said that on 4 June 2018, he wrote asking CAF’s commercial rights agency Lagardere to provide within 60 days a new offer for the broadcast rights as per the CAF rules. He said that Lagardere then started to prolong their response.
When the deadline ended with no answer focus then fell on a CAF committee chaired by Congolese FA president Omari Selemani with two members Hani Abu Rida of Egypt and Fawzy Laqja from Morocco.
Fahmy said: “They (the committee) pressurised me and said we will talk to Lagardere while CAF has every right to take them to Swiss Court. Now I am out of CAF and Lagardere are in.”
Late last month, reports in Egyptian media revealed some information on the CAF Chief investigations quoting sources close to Amr Fahmy.
Insideworldfootball then approached the former CAF General Secretary who refused to comment.
Contact the writer of this story, Abdelaziz Abuhamar, at moc.l1714035499labto1714035499ofdlr1714035499owedi1714035499sni@o1714035499fni1714035499