Fifa president candidates lobby for Rwanda vote

FIFA president candidates have made direct appeals to Rwanda’s football federation (Ferwafa) for the body’s top job in world football. Incumbent Fifa president Joseph Sepp Blatter was the first to make the appeal in a four-page letter sent to 208 member federations with Rwanda inclusive early this week. In the letter, Blatter said that he will provide stability, continuity and reliability if re-elected for the high-profile.“From 2011-2015, I will inject $1 billion for development projects among all 208 members, ensure discipline, fair play, deal with the threats of corruption, match-fixing and doping, improve the quality of football and reinforce the universality of football. I have the experience, energy, ideas band motivation to complete the mission,” the letter read in part. The 75-year-old Swiss, who has led soccers world governing body since 1998, seeks a fourth four-year term that he says will be his last. His challenger and former ally Prince Mohamed Bin Hammam met Rwanda’s Prime Minister Bernard Makuza and top Ferwafa officials on Thursday seeking for Rwanda’s vote. Hammam said he would double the $250,000 (Rwf 150m) each national association receives from FIFA, which had revenue of more than $4 billion between 2007 and 2010. He also promised to replace the 24-member FIFA executive committee with a 41-member body to reduce the power of individual officials. Multimillionaire Hammam, 61, made his money in construction in the Gulf, and helped fund Blatter’s first election. Both men have been traveling the world speaking to as many federations as possible before the final vote. Prime Minister Makuza declined to reveal the candidate Rwanda would be backing but said, “Our backing will be based on the programmes and plans of the candidates.” FIFA’s 208 member associations will be polled at the organization’s annual congress in Zurich on June 1. The winner will need a two-thirds majority of valid votes cast in the first ballot, or a majority in the second. Ends

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Fifa president candidates lobby for Rwanda vote