FIFA and AFC have instructed Football Association of Maldives (FAM) to cancel their internal election, which was earlier scheduled to be held on January 31.
Responding to an appeal for advice from the associations, they have issued a response addressed to FAM's Acting General Secretary Jaushan Shareef.
Some points highlighted in FIFA/AFC response
- FAM electoral efforts are not legitimate, and hence must be brought to a halt
- Advise to organize a congress meeting to appoint members to the electoral committee and electoral appeals committee, and to ensure to adhere by the FAM Electoral Code when doing so
- To restart the electoral process, and elect a new executive committee of the association
They further stated that they would be closely observing the election that FAM holds.
The current President of FAM is Bassam Jaleel. He is under investigation from the police on accusations of being involved in the misappropriation of funds granted to the association by AFC and FIFA.
Bassam, who has served two terms in the position, has announced that he will not be contesting in the upcoming FAM election. The candidates who are contesting for the position are Ahmed Thoriq (Tom) and Mufaviz Hashim (Mufa).