With an openly flawed election ongoing, local football governing body Federation of Uganda Football Associations (Fufa) is facing fresh embarrassment as its flamboyant leader Moses Magogo is called “an incompetent thug managing Ugandan football” by local MP and journalist Hon. Allan Sewanyana.
Sewanyana on 30th May 2017 petitioned FIFA’s Ethics and Integrity Committee in Zurich, Switzerland with material evidence arising out of Moses Magogo’s ‘illicit, illegal and corrupt dealings’ with the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 match entry tickets that had been designated to Uganda by FIFA for ‘his own profit and personal aggrandizement.’
Sewanyana on Wednesday told journalists in Kampala that, ” .. we want someone with clean hands to manage our football and thus have petitioned FIFA to investigate Magogo and make him step aside within two months. ”
Magogo has been accused of involvement in a scam to sell 126 World Cup tickets meant for Ugandans to non Ugandans, in breach of the FIFA Code of Ethics and the FIFA Ticket Sales Regulation when he entered into private dealings with a one Howard Scwartz based in Florida, USA of World Sports and Hospitality acting through his Ugandan agent, Ms. Peninah Kabenge Aligaweesa through whom part of the $40,000 (UGX 144 million) was channelled.
Emails seen by TheUgandan show the Magogo pocketing money totaling to $5000 — as advance on the would be profit on 2nd June 2014.
Uganda’s First Lady and Minister for Education and Sports, Janet Museveni has been approcahed by MP Ssewanyana over the matter.
Magogo strongly denied the allegations but in his affidavit, MP Ssewanyana who also owns a football team in Katwe, Kampala claimed that Magogo has no known source of income whereas the office of the Fufa President according to Fufa Statutes doesn’t attract remunerations, Magogo leads a very luxurious life with several fleet of expensive vehicles and houses – illegally obtained using his office.
Fufa said it had been “made aware of implicating the person of the Fufa President in matters of unauthorized selling of tickets and has requested Moses Magogo’s personal lawyers Kabega Bogezi & Bukenya Advocates to take over the matter.”
In a strongly-worded statement issued by Fufa in Magogo’s defence, Fufa Head Communication Ahmed Hussein decried the allegations as false.
“All Ugandans that applied and paid for the tickets received them without any complaints whatsoever. It is therefore incorrect to allege that FIFA gives Fufa tickets for free distribution to Ugandans and there is no single Ugandan that was disenfranchised of the right to buy a ticket for the 2014 World Cup.”
“Fufa is aware that this is election-related machinations but reiterates that the leadership of Fufa will be determined democratically and by the Members of Fufa and in accordance with the Fufa Statutes. Many of such statements are likely to come up in a bid to tarnish the image of the institution, its leaders and also divert the attention of football development in the country.”
Amid growing controversy, Moses Magogo is gearing up to win his second term at Mengo come 5th August 2017 in Masindi District where the elective AGM will be held with most of the 83 Fufa delegates supporting the incumbent.
Magogo’s current woes come less than a year since he supported current FIFA President Gianni Infantino who alleged helped bring down Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini – over allegations of financial mismanagement within the organisation.
World Cup organiser FIFA has been engulfed in ticketing scandals in the past. Former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner’s family made at least £500,000 profit selling tickets to the 2006 World Cup.
However, it is likely to raise eyebrows as Ssewanyana and his lawyer Mr. Allan Mulindwa are said to be accusing Infantino of the likeliness of having a personal motive to protect Magogo. Magogo did vote Infantino for Fifa president, which was against the Caf position with the continental body having agreed to back Sheik Salman bin Ibrahim al Khalifa of Bahrain. It was a brave call by Magogo to go against the all-powerful Issa Hayatou.
Using his closeness to Infantino, Magogo has since been appointed a member of the Caf executive committee by the Caf Congress in Manama, Bahrain.
The development is a new chapter in the meteoric but tainted rise of the 41-year-old, whose ascent to the Caf excom besides also serving as a member of the Caf Reforms Committee for the next four years.
