FKF President, Sam Nyamweya during the launch of his election manifesto in 2011.
NAIROBI, May 28- Football Kenya Federation (FKF) boss Sam Nyamweya has been charged in a German TV expose on corruption in football of ‘pocketing’ more than USD 500,000 (Sh48.9m) in development aid funds from world governing body, FIFA.
In a documentary titled “Soccer for Sale – Sepp Blatter and Allegations of Sleaze at FIFA” that aired on Deutsche Welle on Monday, Jérôme J. Dufourg, a French football marketing executive who worked with FKF provided documents supporting claims that allegedly implicate Nyamweya who is in Zurich for the FIFA General Congress.
The money in question pertains to “development aid that FIFA generously provides for each association guaranteed by African votes for Blatter” the DW expose charged.
“I have documents from November 2011 to April and May 2013 and it’s clearly stating that Sam Nyamweya has stolen more than half a million dollars of funds coming from FIFA through the Financial Assistant Programme, bonuses from CAF assistant programmes and then from Government,” Dufourg alleged.
According to DW, Dufourg showed them bank statements from FKF and “it is plain to see that almost USD 200,000 in development funds came from FIFA. But the amount doesn’t show up in the association annual report. Instead, withdraws adding up to USD 500,000 always came after deposits, that is clear evidence of corruption,” the documentary went on.
Dufourg submitted the documents to FIFA internal investigators in autumn last year, going to Zurich to do it but nothing has happened yet.
“Been there and have shown them all the papers I have, which you cannot deny, it’s in black and white. The consolidated accounts, the bank statements we have show official communication that he (Nyamweya) has stolen money and there is embezzlement and mismanagement of funds.
“They have not investigated and that looks like a crime when you show someone something is wrong and you’re not acting,” the marketing executive asserted.
FIFA Investigative Committee, the only authorised body to speak on the matter told DW rules made by the world governing body made it impossible for them to provide information.
FKF “did not respond to a number of requests,” they added, citing the appearance of Nyamweya in the ‘list of shame’ published by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) cast further aspersions on his integrity although he has not been formally charged.
Blatter is standing for a fifth term as head of the International FIFA.
“But, at 79, the FIFA president is facing an avalanche of corruption accusations that refuse to go away. These are no deterrent to Blatter. He is making renewed pledges of reform and greater transparency in this bid to maintain his grip on power.
“Meanwhile, the report of an investigative committee into sleaze allegations in connection with the Russian and Qatari bids for the next two World Cup tournaments remains under wraps. What is Blatter’s strategy? How does he see himself and his role at FIFA?,” DW wrote in the tagline for the documentary that linked Nyamweya to worldwide football sleaze.
